


Stained Glass Window

by Inkandquills, writersstudy



Series: Roleplay Fics [8]
Category: Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: Demons, Fighting, Kino needs to get his shit together, M/M, Magic, Neither is Yanan, Smut, Yuto isn't a bad person we promise, fae, incubus, lots of smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-21
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:44:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 38,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21880735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inkandquills/pseuds/Inkandquills, https://archiveofourown.org/users/writersstudy/pseuds/writersstudy
Summary: If Hyunggu was smarter, he would have never gone back in those woods. But he did and now his life was completely changed forever.[[PLEASE NOTE THAT WE, THE AUTHORS, HAVE NOT GIVEN PERMISSION FOR THIS WORK TO BE RE-POSTED ANYWHERE EXCEPT DIRECTLY ON AO3. IF YOU SEE THIS WORK ANYWHERE ELSE, PLEASE REPORT IT FOR COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT AND NOTIFY US AT LIVING.LENIENTLY@GMAIL.COM. THANK YOU.]]
Relationships: Kang Hyunggu | Kino/Yan An
Series: Roleplay Fics [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1256117
Comments: 3
Kudos: 22





	Stained Glass Window

Yanan sat in a tree, idly swinging his leg back and forth. He was high enough up that he wouldn’t be noticed, but low enough that he could still see everyone that passed by. He was looking for someone, anyone really, to be his next victim. 

Hyunggu was humming to himself as he made his way through the forest. He had gone foraging for some ingredients for a potion and was on his way back to his home now. 

Yanan’s eyes lit up when he finally spotted what he wanted. The boy had dark hair, almost covering his eyes, and little pointed ears that stuck out between the strands. He couldn’t have been more than a few years younger than Yanan, which was perfect. When the boy was just about to pass his tree again, Yanan jumped down and landed in front of you. “What brings you to these woods?” he asked pleasantly. 

Hyunggu jumped back when someone suddenly landed on the ground in front of him. Immediately, his senses were on alert. This person was dangerous. “I’m just passing through,” he said firmly, “excuse me.”

“Where are you going so fast?” Yanan asked soothingly, “we just met. Isn’t it rude to run off so quickly?” He didn’t want to charm the boy yet, but he didn’t want to lose him this quickly either. 

“I don’t believe that’s any of your concern,” Hyunggu said stiffly, trying to step around the other man. He couldn’t tell what exactly his magic was, just that he didn’t want to get caught up in it. 

Yanan tsked his tongue. The boy was not as friendly as he looked like he would be. “I’m just trying to make conversation,” he said, “I don’t get to meet a lot of people around here and it gets very lonely.”

“Your magic is bright red,” Hyunggu said, gesturing to the space around the other man, “I doubt anyone willingly comes around you anyway.”

Yanan tilted his head and looked the boy up and down. He hadn’t met anyone that had been able to detect what type of magic he had until it was too late. “I’ve had plenty of people come to me willingly but they don’t stick around,” he said cryptically.

“Well, in any case, I really do need to get going,” Hyunggu said, finally managing to step around the other man. “Deadlines, and whatnot.”

Yanan reached out and grabbed the boy’s arm gently. “Will I be seeing you around here again?” he asked innocently. 

“Now that I know a hypnotic is hanging around here? I doubt it,” Hyunggu said, pulling his arm away. “I’ll just take the long way next time.”

Yanan frowned. He hated how close the boy already was to knowing what he was. “There could be worse things on the other path. I hear werewolves are rampant in these woods,” he said. 

“I’d rather a werewolf over whatever the hell you are,” Hyunggu said disdainfully, “I know how to tame a werewolf.” He always carried wolfsbane with him, even when he was nowhere near wolf territories. 

Yanan drew himself up to his full height. “You know how to tame a werewolf?” he asked with a raised eyebrow, “and you are quite mistaken if you believe dealing with a werewolf is safer than being around me.”

“Tame, incapacitate, it’s all the same,” Hyunggu said, “but there is nothing safe about hanging around a hypnotic.” He was slowly stepping backwards toward the other end of the clearing. He could easily get away once he was in the woods. His magic allowed him to travel through the trees, but he rarely used it since it exhausted him so much. 

Yanan scoffed. “How innocent of you to think I’m a mere hypnotic,” he said, “you really don’t need to leave so soon. Nothing in this part of the woods will hurt you.”

“Maybe not, but I’m on a deadline,” Hyunggu said again, “if you’ll please excuse me.”

“I’m sure a few more minutes wouldn’t hurt,” Yanan said grabbing onto the boy’s arm again. He pulled a little too hard, accidentally causing him to drop the things he was carrying. “Oh, I’m sorry.” He knelt down to help pick up what could only be the ingredients to a potion, keeping one of the mushrooms concealed in his own hand. It would be hard for the boy to notice one was missing until he got home, which meant he had to come back. 

Hyunggu huffed and picked up his things as quickly as he could. “Are you done bothering me?” he demanded.

Yanan took a few steps back. “Yes, I’m sorry. It was nice to have met you. I hope to see you again soon,” he said pleasantly. 

Hyunggu whipped around with his basket and was on his way. As soon as he hit the trees, he travelled through them, wanting to get away from the hypnotic as quickly as he could. When he returned home, he busied himself putting everything away and cursed when he realized that the man had taken some of his supplies. “Yuto!” he called, “I need your help!”

As soon as the boy disappeared through the trees, Yanan scaled his tree again and settled among the branches. He wasn’t watching the people that passed by anymore. Instead his focus was on the mushroom in his hand. He tossed it up and down and let his mind wander to the boy whose name he still did not know.

“What’s wrong?” the dark mage asked as he appeared in Hyunggu’s doorway. “I ran into a hypnotic on my way home and he stole an important ingredient. I can’t make the potion without it,” Hyunggu explained. Yuto’s expression darkened. “Let’s go then,” he said gruffly. 

Yanan stopped tossing the mushroom when he heard noise in the trees. He wasn’t surprised to see the boy, but he was surprised to see he had brought a friend. A friend that did not look particularly happy. This should be fun.

Yuto frowned when they reached the clearing. The force of the red magic was strong and he could tell that Hyunggu’s amulet, made for him by Yuto himself, was the only thing that had kept him from being bewitched by proximity. There was only one type of person that could safely wield this much red magic. “Show yourself, incubus!” he demanded. 

Yanan scowled. Of course the boy would have a friend who was skilled in dark magic. He slipped the mushroom into his pocket and leapt down to the forest floor. “Who are you? The babysitter?” he asked flatly.

“You’re going to give my friend his property back,” Yuto said calmly, “or we’re going to have problems.” Hyunggu was half hiding behind him. He hadn’t realized that the other man was an incubus. 

Yanan rolled his eyes. “His property,” he said with a scoff, “need I remind you that your friend can find his own replacement supplies? And you didn’t answer my question.”

“He paid for it,” Yuto said, “why should he give it up to some two bit thief?”

Yanan laughed at that. “You think of me as lowly as some thief? You are quite mistaken to believe that I’m just going to hand over what I happened to find laying forgotten on the ground,” he said. 

“You clearly are if you resort to thievery to secure a victim,” Yuto said disdainfully. He was quickly getting annoyed. 

“I’m not resorting to thievery. I’m just...trying something new. It obviously worked if he came back,” Yanan said flatly. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the mushroom. “If he wants it back so badly, he can come get it himself.”

Hyunggu started forward but Yuto stopped him with an arm to the chest and stepped forward slowly toward the incubus. “That’s not an option,” he said, staring down the man. 

Yanan took a few steps back. “Well then, I guess he’s not getting this back,” he said. He tossed the mushroom up once and caught it again. Never breaking eye contact with the tall man who was attempting to intimidate him.

The next time the incubus tossed Hyunggu’s mushroom, Yuto froze it in midair and used its own tiny shadow to guide it back to his hand. Hyunggu stowed it in his bag, keeping a wary eye on the incubus. 

Yanan’s expression darkened. He didn’t trust this man one bit. “So that’s all? You made the long trip back just to get one measly mushroom when you could have easily just gotten a new one? Or are you going to continue to try and insult me?” he asked, stepping back towards the pair and standing up straighter. 

Hyunggu wasn’t about to tell the incubus why the mushroom was so important. He wasn’t stupid. “Let’s go,” he muttered, tugging on Yuto’s arm.

Yanan shook his head. “I don’t even know why I bothered. I should have known he was useless long before he had to drag your sorry ass all the way out here. The forest kind always are,” he said. 

Hyunggu’s jaw clenched but he didn’t give in to the mockery. It would serve him no good. “Let’s  _ go _ , Yuto,” he said again. 

“Yeah, Yuto, why don’t you go? There’s no reason for you to stay any longer. Unless you’d like to,” Yanan said with a crooked smile. 

Yuto sent the incubus one last glare before sending himself and Hyunggu both off in a whirl of shadow. “Don’t go that way anymore,” he said when they reached home, “it isn’t safe.”

Yanan frowned. He hated black magic intruding into his woods. But it was only the more motivation to go after his friend. How he would love to see the look on Yuto’s face the day the boy chose to willingly come with him. 

“There’s no other direct path to the market,” Hyunggu said, “any other path will take at least three times as long. I don’t have much choice.” Forest magic wasn’t exactly in high demand, so it wasn’t like he sold much to begin with, but having to spend weeks traveling instead of just days would only make it worse. 

There was no reason for Yanan to stay any longer so he went home. His small stone house was not nearly as welcoming and inviting as the other homes littered throughout the forest but it was perfect for him. It made sure that no curious eyes wandered up to it. The only person who ever let themselves into his house without his explicit permission was Hongseok. And judging by the smoke rising from the chimney, his friend was already there.

“He’s nearly strong enough to overcome your amulet,” Yuto said, “at least don’t go until I can make you a stronger one. Please?” Hyunggu sighed but agreed. 

“What took you so long?” Hongseok asked as Yanan opened the door, “and why didn’t you bring anyone with you?” “I tried. I found a little fae too but he resisted me more than I expected. But considering he has a friend who specializes in dark magic, I assume that has something to do with it,” Yanan replied.

Once Yuto was satisfied with his promise, he finally let Hyunggu go work on his potion. He was supposed to get this to a fertility witch in the morning and was very behind schedule. 

Hongseok growled quietly. “You let dark magic into these woods?” he asked. “I didn’t intend to. I was hoping just the boy would come back but he brought a friend. We’ll have to see what happens next time he comes through. If he brings Yuto with him again, he’s all yours,” Yanan promised. 

Fortunately, Hyunggu finished the potion on time, along with all his other current commissions. It wasn’t until about a week later that he found himself needing to return to the market on the other side of the woods. Yuto hadn’t finished the new amulet yet, but it was urgent, so Hyunggu decided to risk it anyway.

Yanan was pleasantly surprised when the boy came through without his friend. He decided to wait until he was on his trip back to stop him again. “Well, you certainly are a glutton for punishment if you didn’t listen to your friend,” he commented. 

Hyunggu sighed in annoyance. “Are you doing this just to bother me? You’re an incubus, not an imp.”

“Of course I’m not doing this just to bother you. But your friend has done something to you that helps you resist my magic. And he’s going to be very sorry the day I reverse it,” Yanan said, “I know it’s not a direct spell. But mostly likely something you carry, probably something very valuable to you.”

Hyunggu snorted. Yuto was smarter than that. The amulet was something he carried at all times, but it was far from physical. “You’re welcome to try and remove it from me,” he said, “but I doubt you’ll be successful. If you’re trying to woo me somehow, you’ll have to do it the normal way.”

“Is that a challenge? You are quite brave for your type, although I’m sure that Yuto has taught you quite a few tricks,” Yanan said. He didn’t want to waste the time courting the boy in a traditional manner, but that would probably make his friend even more upset.

“Yuto didn’t need to teach me anything,” Hyunggu said in a saccharine voice, “I’m just warning you that your magic won’t work on me.”

Yanan rolled his eyes. “Yet,” he said, “it’s such a shame that I know your friend’s name and not yours though.”

“And you won’t,” Hyunggu said firmly, “Yuto could overpower you; I, regrettably, cannot.”

“There’s not many people in this world that can overpower me but your friend is not one of them,” Yanan said, “it’s cute that you think so highly of him.”

“Black magic is the highest order of magic known to exist,” Hyunggu said, “he’s stronger than you just by virtue of being a dark mage.”

Yanan frowned. A dark mage? That didn’t bode well for him. “And how exactly did you convince him to be friends with you?” he asked. 

“I didn’t,” Hyunggu said vaguely, “he entered my house and never left.”

Yanan gave the boy a once over. “But you’re not bonded,” he said, “you mean to tell me you accidentally befriended a dark mage?”

“He showed up at my house and I couldn’t get rid of him,” Hyunggu said evasively, “why does it matter to you?”

“You’re more trusting than I expected you to be,” Yanan said simply, “you just keep surprising me.”

“Yuto has never made any attempt to hurt me,” Hyunggu said stiffly, “you, on the other hand, would have me glamour already if his magic wasn’t in the way.”

“It wouldn’t have hurt you,” Yanan said, “and you wouldn’t have even known the difference.”

“Hurt doesn’t always involve pain,” Hyunggu said, “deception causes hurt too.”

Yanan rolled his eyes. “Depends on who you talk to. But I’m sure you want to get back to your little friend,” he said. His eyes followed the person that was walking towards them on the path they were blocking. 

“I would like to get back to my work, yes,” Hyunggu said. He stepped around the incubus with a huff. 

“Don’t be a stranger,” Yanan called after him. He quickly switched his attention to the man walking towards him. It had been much too long since he had brought someone home. 

Hyunggu left the clearing as quickly as he could. He was surprised that the incubus had let him go once again.

Yanan took out his frustrations on the man that passed by. How could this dark mage have protected a measly fae from his charms? He was going to find a way around his magic. To prove himself if nothing else. 

To say Yuto was disappointed in him was an understatement. He banned Hyunggu from leaving the house until the new amulet was finished, which meant he was trapped for at least a week. It was torture. 

Yanan waited for the boy to show up again but he didn’t. He racked his brain for some way to get through the dark mage’s magic. Eventually he went to talk to Hui. Maybe the older man’s magic wouldn’t be blocked.

Finally, after what felt like ages, Yuto finished the amulet. It was a long process to get it properly connected with Hyunggu, one that wore him out for a good couple of days. After two weeks of being trapped, he finally was able to leave and he immediately went venturing off to the market. 

Yanan was leaning up against a tree this time, Hui wasn’t the type to climb. Finally he saw the boy walking towards them. If Hui’s magic didn’t work he wasn’t sure what he could do. 

Hyunggu groaned when he saw the incubus again. The other man really was doing this just to antagonize him.

“That’s him,” Yanan whispered. “He doesn’t seem like your type,” Hui commented. “I just want to be able to get past the dark magic protecting him,” Yanan mumbled.

Hyunggu didn’t recognize the man talking with the incubus. Maybe if he was lucky, they wouldn’t see him. He ducked his head and quickened his pace.

Hui smirked and turned around. “Wait! I haven’t seen you around here before. My name is Hui. What’s yours?” he asked politely yet firmly.

Hyunggu tried to keep going, but his body was stuck. His throat had seized and his brain was yelling at him to just answer the damn question. “Kino,” he finally choked out.

Yanan perked up when he realized that Hui’s magic wasn’t stopped by whatever the dark mage had given him. “That’s a nice name,” Hui commented, “where are you going? Not a lot of people come through here.”

“Market,” Hyunggu gritted out. His body turned toward the pair without his permission. 

Hui smiled pleasantly when Kino turned back around. “It’s a long way to the market. Why don’t you come with us and rest for a little while before you keep going?” he suggested. 

That was the absolute last thing that Hyunggu wanted to do, but for some reason, he couldn’t say no. Despite his resistance, he stumbled toward the pair. 

Yanan wrapped his arm around Kino and let it rest on his waist. He knew the boy couldn’t run but he didn’t want to risk it. Hui led the way through the woods to Yanan’s home. He didn’t want to think about what was going to happen to the boy once he left. 

Hyunggu tried desperately to break whatever hold the other man had on him, but he couldn’t. If he could just touch the amulet, he could call Yuto, but his hands wouldn’t move. 

Hui opened the door for them and watched as Yanan led Kino over to the couch. Hongseok snuck out the back door and rounded the house to wait out front. “So I hear you have a friend protecting you. How does he do it?” Hui asked getting straight to the point. 

“There’s an amulet,” Hyunggu gritted out unwillingly, “on my chest.”

Yanan pulled open the buttons on Kino’s shirt and growled when he saw the amulet was tattooed into the boy’s skin. There was no way he could get rid of it now. “Your friend is very talented,” Hui complimented, “I’m sure he’s going to come looking for you but you can wait here for a little while. Yanan will let you go when he deems fit.”

“You can touch it if you want,” Hyunggu tried. Anyone touching it would get Yuto’s attention, especially if that person wasn’t Hyunggu himself.

Yanan examined the tattoo. It didn’t look raised and a quick touch confirmed that. There was nothing he could do to destroy it. 

Hyunggu was glad that the incubus had taken the suggestion. Hopefully, Yuto would be here quickly. 

“Well you don’t need me anymore. Have fun you two. I’ll see you again, Kino,” Hui said. He took his leave and went to talk to Hongseok for a few minutes. 

Hyunggu glared at the incubus. “Well?” He demanded, “what’s the grand plan, genius?”

Yanan smiled. “You’re the first person I’ve come across that hasn’t been too brainwashed to know what’s going on. I’m going to have some fun,” he said. He slowly ran his hand down Kino’s chest and finished unbuttoning his shirt. 

“Don’t touch me!” Hyunggu protested, shoving the incubus back. The rest of his body was still stuck. He really needed Yuto to show up now.

Oh, how Yanan hated not having full control over the situation. He had never met anyone, let alone a fae, that had been able to resist him and it was incredibly frustrating. He walked back over to the couch and hauled Kino to his feet by his arm and dragged him to the bedroom. 

Hyunggu struggled as much as his body would allow, which didn’t get him very far. Fortunately, the sky began to grow menacingly dark. Yuto was here. 

Yanan threw Kino onto the bed but froze when he heard shouting outside. “How did he find you so fast?” he asked angrily. 

Hyunggu just smirked and tapped the amulet again. Under his touch, it glowed. “You can touch it if you want,” he mocked. 

A tracking beacon. Of course. Yanan should have seen this coming. He cursed under his breath. Outside, Hongseok faced the intruder down, prepared to use any trick he had to get rid of him. 

Yuto was  _ pissed _ . How dare the incubus take  _ his  _ Hyunggu? He was ready to rain fury down on the little stone hut.

Hongseok stood in front of the door, hot fire dripping from his fingertips. “Take another step and I’ll burn you to the ground and dance on your ashes,” he spat. 

“I’d like to see you try,” Yuto snarled. He yanked the shadow out from under the fire user’s feet, sending him flying across the yard.

Hongseok grunted when he hit the ground. He gasped for air, trying to collect his breath with the wind knocked out of him. Once he got his focus back, he threw a small fireball at the mage, trying to at least distract him. 

Yuto sucked the smoke from the fireball until it was just a tiny spark. He then sent that smoke flying back at the fire user in a dark wall of air. 

Hongseok turned his head just as the smoke hit him. He pushed himself to his feet, a stronger fireball already building in his hands. He threw it at the mage, another one right behind it. While he was distracted, he started creating a wall of fire around the house.

It was all Yuto could do to extinguish fires as they flew at him. He yelled loudly, blasting all the smoke at once and knocking the other man over. He took the chance to grab him by the shadow and fling him all over the small yard. 

There wasn’t much Hongseok could do. He did his best to escape the mage’s hold but he was almost powerless. When the mage slammed into the ground for the last time, he felt a couple of his ribs crack. He bit back a cry of pain and did his best to rebuild the protective wall of fire he had started. 

Yuto slowly approached the fire user, eyes murderous. He collected the smoke and flame as he went, directing it all back down his victim’s throat. “Where is he?” he gritted out when he finally reached the other man. 

Hongseok coughed and tried, but failed, to hide his wince of pain. “Fuck you. Find him yourself,” he spat.

Yuto crouched down and patted the fire user’s cheek, watching with a smirk as the skin under his hand darkened and crumbled away like ash. “Oh, I must have forgotten to mention,” he said innocently, standing back up, “I may be a dark mage by trade, but my specialty is in necromancy.” He left the fire user on the ground and went to find Hyunggu. 

Hongseok gasped and grabbed at his cheek, or what was left of it. It wasn’t bleeding but it felt like his skin was being burned off. He clenched his jaw, trying not to move it and cause himself more pain. He wanted to scream to warn Yanan but he couldn’t. Instead, he was reduced to laying on the ground in a heap, unable to get up.

Yuto stalked through the stone house, slamming through doorways and destroying belongings until he found the room he was looking for. Hyunggu was half naked on the bed, pinned down by the incubus’ weight. His eyes were glazed over and he wasn’t moving. 

Yanan whipped around when he heard the door slam open. He growled in frustration. If Hongseok had been able to hold Yuto off for just a little bit longer he would have had everything he wanted. “How did you get in here? Where’s Hongseok?” he asked angrily, only pushing himself to sit up a little bit.

“Let’s just say he’s dealing with a touch of death right now,” Yuto said, “you must be really desperate, aren’t you, slut? So low on energy that you have to take a victim you can’t even glamour properly. Hand him over.” 

“What did you do to Hongseok?” Yanan asked, ignoring the digs at himself, “I’m not giving him back until my friend is in here in one piece.” He knew he couldn’t take Yuto in a fight, he magic wasn’t equipped for that. 

“Oh, he’s in one piece alright,” Yuto said, “that piece is just a little smaller than before.” He hoped that, by keeping the incubus’ attention on him, Hyunggu would be able to take back some of his energy and would wake up.

Yanan wasn’t going to admit it but he was a little afraid of the mage. He hadn’t met anyone who had been able to overpower Hongseok so easily. “I thought your amulet was going to be stronger than it actually is. It didn’t stop my friend at all and if I had realized it was a tracking beacon earlier, you would have never known he was here.”

“I’m not here to talk about the amulet,” Yuto said firmly, “I’m here to retrieve my faerie.”

Yanan reached back and grabbed Kino’s wrist. “Bring me back Hongseok in one piece and I’ll return your little friend,” he demanded. He couldn’t kill Kino like this but at least he could keep him relatively incapacitated. 

Yuto sighed and waved a hand. He ignored all the bumps and crashes as the shadows dragged Hongseok through the house the room they were in. “This is as much of him as I can give you,” he said disdainfully, looking down at the groaning pyromancer. 

Yanan’s eyes widened. “Hongseok,” he breathed. His friend managed a quiet groan in response. “Fix what you’ve done to him. Now!” he screamed. He hated that there was nothing he could do to Yuto. None of his glamours were working, even as he slowly gained some power back.

“Oh, I wish I could, but I don’t want to,” Yuto said, “I’ve had enough of this.” He tried to use the shadows to send the incubus flying, but his shadows were too mixed with Hyunggu’s and the faerie went flying as well. 

Yanan growled when they were thrown to the ground. Kino, on the other hand, didn’t make a sound. Taking a risk, Yanan scrambled to lay over the boy again and leaned down. If he could at least make Yuto jealous, he would be satisfied. 

Yuto roared and all but stalked over to pull the incubus away physically. He bodily threw him across the room and stopped to take Hyunggu into his arms. The faerie moaned weakly, just starting to come back to himself. “You’ll regret this,” Yuto snarled before whipping them both into the shadows and far, far away. 

Yanan took a moment to recover when he was slammed into the wall. Pulling himself together, he crawled across the floor to Hongseok. “Seok? Hongseok, can you hear me?” he asked. His friend nodded weakly, not bothering to hide the pitiful moan that followed it. “We need Changgu,” Yanan said unnecessarily. 

Hyunggu still wasn’t fully alert when they arrived home, so Yuto tucked him into bed and placed as many energy gaining sigils on and around him as he could manage. When the faerie finally did wake, he immediately burst into tears. “It’s alright, my love,” Yuto soothed, holding him tightly, “you’re safe now.”

Yanan was scared to move Hongseok so he regretfully left him on the floor and pushed himself to his feet. On unsteady legs, he rushed through the forest to Changgu’s small hut. He all but collapsed through the door and stumbled around the house looking for his friend. “Changgu, I need your help,” he said as he collapsed into his friend’s arms when he found him.

Yuto couldn’t get Hyunggu to calm down on his own, so he regretfully had to send for their neighbor. Jinho was a siren on land, with a voice that could convince anyone to do anything. He helped Hyunggu through panic attacks before and Yuto knew he could do it again.

“What happened?” Changgu asked nervously as he was dragged out of his house. “He...he hurt Hongseok really bad,” Yanan replied. “Who?” Changgu asked. “A dark mage,” Yanan said quietly. Changgu’s eyes widened. “There’s a dark mage in these woods now?” he asked nervously. Yanan shook his head. “He came to get his friend back.”

Sure enough, Jinho was able to get Hyunggu calm and asleep within minutes. It didn’t even take one full song. He kept singing for a while, hoping to calm his thoughts and dreams while he slept, and Yuto kept his ears plugged with wax. When Jinho finally joined him in the kitchen, he removed the plugs. “So what happened?” the siren asked. “An incubus nearly got him,” Yuto muttered. 

Yanan led Changgu back to his house and into the bedroom where Hongseok still lay on the floor. “Oh, hyung, what did he do to you?” he asked rhetorically. He knelt down next to the older man and gently moved his arms that was wrapped around his ribcage. He laid his own hands over the injury and focused on healing the two fractured bones so that Hongseok could breathe easier. 

“There hasn’t been an incubus around here in a very long time,” Jinho commented. “He’s been harassing Hyunggu every time he’s gone to market for the past month,” Yuto said, “normally, the amulet protects him, but I think the incubus had help today.”

When Hongseok’s ribs were finally healed, Changgu slumped back against Yanan. Healing broken bones always took the most out of him but he still had to fix his cheek. He reached over and tried to move Hongseok’s hand that was holding his cheek, but the older man wouldn’t budge. “I know it hurts but I can’t help you if you’re covering it,” he said gently. Hongseok reluctantly moved his hand, revealing the decayed skin underneath. 

“He can’t go to the market alone anymore,” Jinho said, “he should take me or Wooseok next time he goes.” Yuto sighed. He could agree with that. “I doubt he’ll be going again for a while,” he said. 

Changgu could tell the moment he looked at Hongseok’s cheek that this was the work of dark magic. He laid his hand over the damaged skin anyway but unsurprisingly he couldn’t heal it. He pulled his hand back and dropped it into his lap. “There’s nothing I can do for your cheek,” he said sadly, “I’m not strong enough to heal injuries caused by dark magic.”

“I hope you did enough damage to that incubus that he’ll leave Hyunggu alone,” Jinho said as he got up to take his leave. “He’d better,” Yuto said darkly. 

Hongseok pushed himself to sit up. “I’ll kill him myself for what he did to me,” he spat. “Hyung, I think you should just let this go. You’re lucky that’s all he did to you,” Changgu said gently. Across the room, Yanan was leaning up against the wall. “How did he get so powerful? I’ve never met a dark mage like him,” he said quietly. 

Once Jinho took his leave, Yuto busied himself making food for Hyunggu to wake up to. He was sure that the faerie would be hungry.

“No one who practices dark magic learns their skills honestly. He’s skilled in necromancy too. I wouldn’t be surprised if he sold a piece of his soul to get this strong,” Changgu said. “Either way, he deserves to pay,” Hongseok growled. Yanan managed a thin smile. “I know how to hurt him most,” he said. 

Hyunggu woke up with a gasp, sitting bolt upright in bed. It took him a moment to remember where he was and relax into his pillows. So much had happened that he didn’t understand. When the incubus had tapped into his life force, his consciousness had been forced out, leaving him to watch everything play out like an audience member at a play. He had never seen Yuto hurt someone like that before. 

“His Kino,” Yanan continued, “if we can convince him to come with us willingly, it would destroy the mage.” Hongseok nodded. “But the mage will kill you if you take his friend again,” Changgu warned. “Not if we don’t get caught,” Yanan said. 

Yuto entered the room a little while later with a tray of steaming food. “Here, baby, eat up,” he said, settling the tray on Hyunggu’s lap. The faerie realized then that he was absolutely starving. 

“I’m not getting in the middle of your scheme,” Changgu said, standing up, “and just remember that I can fix almost any physical injury but I can’t bring you back from the dead.”

Hyunggu fell asleep not long after eating. Yuto brought the tray to the kitchen and returned to lay in bed with the faerie. His hand slipped beneath the neckline of Hyunggu’s shirt and laid right over the amulet. He desperately needed to replenish his energy after the fight, and an exhausted Hyunggu would be less likely to go wandering off again. 

Changgu took his leave not much longer after helping Hongseok wrap his cheek. There wasn’t anything they could do except hope it didn’t get infected or spread. Yanan helped his friend onto the couch and then disappeared into his room to start plotting. 

Yuto left the room once he felt Hyunggu’s life force starting to deplete too much. As a result, the faerie slept well past noon and woke feeling like he’d been run over by a wagon. He attributed it to what the incubus had done to him. 

Yanan didn’t get much sleep. He needed to figure out how to destroy the protective power the amulet had. The problem with that lied in the fact that Yuto was more powerful than him and all of his friends combined. 

“How are you feeling?” Yuto asked when Hyunggu finally trudged out to the workshop. “Like death,” the faerie responded, “you should have killed the incubus when you had the chance.”

Yanan finally dragged himself out of bed and went to check on Hongseok. His friend was curled up in a ball asleep on the couch, his hand gently clutching his cheek. There were beads of sweat on his forehead and he was shaking. This wasn’t good at all. Yanan covered him in the thickest blanket he could find before getting a washcloth to help clean up Hongseok’s sweaty face. 

“I can kill him whenever I want,” Yuto said, “keeping you safe was my priority.” Hyunggu sighed and leaned heavily on the doorframe.

There wasn’t much more Yanan could do to help Hongseok. He just had to let the fever run its course and if it got much worse, call Changgu back. Eventually, he collapsed back into bed. He needed to find someone soon. He couldn’t afford to be weakened with the mage still around. 

“All I was doing was protecting you, baby,” Yuto said, standing up and wrapping his arms around the faerie. Hyunggu sighed again. “I know,” he mumbled.

Yanan needed to figure out a way to destroy the amulet. Unfortunately, he didn’t know anyone else skilled in dark magic who would be able to help him. He’d have to figure it out on his own and hope Hui’s magic wasn’t blocked by it the next time he came through. 

Hyunggu stayed inside for the next few days, but he started getting restless. As a forest witch, he needed to be in nature to feel happy. When Yuto had left one day, he snuck out of the house for a walk in the woods.

Yanan had brought a few people home and was feeling much better within a few days. He was hiding in his favorite spot waiting to see if anyone else who fit his standards wandered through the woods. 

Hyunggu felt better with every step that he took through the woods. He even took off his shoes and walked barefoot.

Yanan heard faint footsteps coming towards him. Familiar footsteps. He couldn’t believe Yuto was stupid enough to let Kino wander around these woods on his own. 

Hyunggu wasn’t paying enough attention to where he was going until he ended up back in that same clearing. He could feel the incubus there and proceeded cautiously.

Yanan didn’t want to scare Kino again so he climbed down from his tree long before the boy approached him. “You came back to see me!” he said happily.

“No, I didn’t,” Hyunggu said defensively, “I’m just out for a walk.”

“I’m sure,” Yanan said, “I know we got off on a bad note but I’m not the one you should be afraid of.”

“You wield red magic,” Hyunggu said, a little uncertainty tinging his voice, “of course you’re dangerous. You almost killed me.”

“I didn’t almost kill you. And just because I’m dangerous doesn’t mean you should be afraid of me. Your friend is much more dangerous than I am and you aren’t afraid of him,” Yanan said.

“Yuto would never hurt me,” Hyunggu said firmly, “meanwhile, you tried to sap my entire life force.”

“I did not try to sap your entire life force. I don’t do that anymore,” Yanan said, “and I’m sure he says that but you really can’t trust him. He wields black magic. He’s more dangerous in his weakest state than even I could ever hope to be.”

“Yuto is a good person,” Hyunggu defended, “and you’re  _ not _ , so  _ please  _ leave me alone.”

Yanan frowned. “Is he? Is he really? Kino, I know you can’t be so naive as to believe someone who practices black magic, and necromancy no less, is a good person. There hasn’t been a single person in history who has wielded dark magic and been a good person. How can he be the exception?” he asked. 

“Yuto is different,” Hyunggu insisted, “he only hurts people when he has no choice. You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Yanan sighed and shook his head. “Have you ever wondered if there was someone out there who could treat you better than Yuto? Who actually cares about you? Who would make sure you were happy and healthy other than for their own benefit?” he asked gently.

Hyunggu snorted. “Are you saying that’s you?” he asked incredulously, “you don’t even know my real name!”

“No, I’m not saying it’s me. But even I would treat you much better than he has,” Yanan said, “and why do you use a nickname anyway? Did he tell you only he should be able to use your real name?”

That question gave Hyunggu pause. Did the incubus really not know? “I’m fae,” he said, “we’re taught from birth to never give out our real names. Too much manipulative magic relies on it.”

Yanan held back a smirk. “But not all of it,” he said simply, “even if he doesn’t know your real name, he could do anything he wants to you and frame it as protective. He’s manipulative by pure virtue of the magic he practices.”

“Oh,  _ he  _ knows it,” Hyunggu said, “but I absolutely don’t trust  _ you _ .”

Yanan wasn’t entirely surprised. “I don’t need your real name. The only thing stopping me from charming you is the amulet in your chest,” he said, “that was very foolish of you but he would have gotten what he wanted either way. How long have you even known him?”

“Years,” Hyunggu said, “since I was a child.” The fae rarely raised their own children, instead setting them loose to survive on their own at a young age. Yuto, an immortal by nature, had found him freezing in the woods and taken him in. 

Yanan hummed. He couldn’t imagine how much Yuto had brainwashed Kino in that amount of time. “He probably tricked you into thinking he’s not dangerous,” he mused, “no matter. Just because he’s the strongest person in these woods now, doesn’t mean it’ll stay like that.”

“If you think you have any chance of defeating him, you’re wrong,” Hyunggu said. He didn’t even know why he was still here talking to the incubus. 

Yanan raised his hands in mock surrender. “I don’t have any desire to defeat him. However, if he tries to lay another finger on my friend ever again he will regret every practicing black magic,” he said.

“If your friend hadn’t attacked him, he wouldn’t have had to defend himself,” Hyunggu said. 

“There was no need for him to deform my friend’s face. He could have defended himself just fine without doing that,” Yanan said flatly.

“But now you and your friends are thinking twice about attacking him again,” Hyunggu said, “he’s the only dark mage anywhere around here. He needs to protect himself.”

“The world wouldn’t be upset if his kind died out,” Yanan muttered under his breath, “I won’t go out of my way to attack but he did threaten me and I do not take threats from people like him lightly.”

“People are just cruel towards that which they don’t understand,” Hyunggu said, “if you’ll excuse me, I’m going home.”

“Just don’t let him know you came this way. He’ll think I tried something again and I very much do not want to see him again,” Yanan requested. 

Hyunggu waved the incubus off started his walk home. When he got there, Yuto was waiting at the door, looking murderous. “Where the  _ hell _ have you been?” he demanded. 

Yanan didn’t bring anyone home with him, which proved to be a horrible mistake. He sincerely hoped the dark mage didn’t come back today. Hongseok was still out of commission and there wasn’t much he could do on his own as it was. 

“I just went for a walk,” Hyunggu said defensively, “you know I can’t stay away from nature for too long.” “You smell like that fucking incubus,” Yuto snarled. “Everything smells like the incubus!” Hyunggu argued. 

Yanan ran out of ways to help bring Hongseok’s fever down so he called Changgu to come back. It had been suspiciously quiet all afternoon and it put him even more on edge. He hated being this worried because of the dark mage. Something had to change, and soon. 

“Don’t you dare lie to me!” Yuto yelled. Hyunggu gasped as his head snapped to the side. Yuto had hit him. “Get out!” the dark mage roared, “ungrateful piece of shit!”

Yanan eventually went to bed but he couldn’t fall asleep. Why did he even care so much about the little fae who’s real name he didn’t even know? The only thing he should be worried about was making sure his friend didn’t come back around. 

The amulet burned bright red as Hyunggu scrambled away from Yuto and back into the woods. It hurt his chest and he barely made it to the clearing before the pain became too much. Why was Yuto doing this to him?

Yanan knew he wouldn’t be strong enough to go back into the woods if he waited until the morning so he dragged himself out of bed and back into the woods. He was just desperate enough that he didn’t care who he brought home. 

Hyunggu tried to melt himself into one of the trees, but the amulet was preventing him from using his own magic. He could hear footsteps in the woods, so he tried to hide himself under a tree as best as he could. 

Yanan followed the sound of someone rustling around in the woods. He ran towards whoever it was and froze when he saw Kino again. “What...what are you doing back so soon?” he asked. 

“No,” Hyunggu gasped, “no, no, not you. You can’t be here, please, he’ll kill me!”

Yanan took a few steps back. “What do you mean he’ll kill you? What happened to him protecting you from me?” he asked.

“I don’t know, I don’t know!” Hyunggu rambled, “he - he hit me.”

Yanan’s blood began to boil. “He hit you?” he asked quietly, “see I told you he wasn’t a good person. If he actually loved you, he would never raise a hand to you.”

“It’s not about love,” Hyunggu protested, “he’s practically my dad, it’s not like that. It’s all just about protection.” Even as he said it, he started to doubt it. 

“If he wanted to protect you, he wouldn’t have sent you right back into the lion’s den,” Yanan said. He knelt down and held a hand out to Kino. “Let me help you. I’ll keep you safe from him.”

More than being scared, Hyunggu was angry. How dare Yuto treat him like that? And what better way to get revenge than to go with the incubus that Yuto had said was so dangerous. He took the other man’s hand and got up.

Yanan smiled to himself. This had worked up much better than he anticipated. He took Kino’s hand in his own and led him back to his house. “Changgu, can you come help me?” he called when they went inside.

Hyunggu was nervous, following the incubus into the woods. The last time he had done this, it hadn’t ended well.

Yanan led Kino through the house and into his bedroom. Changgu appeared in the doorway not a moment later. “My friend is going to fix your cheek,” Yanan explained, “it won’t hurt I promise.”

“It’s just a bruise,” Hyunggu mumbled, “it’s fine, don’t waste your energy.”

“Bruises barely take any energy,” Changgu assured. He walked over to the bed and examined the boy’s cheek. “I have to touch you to help. Is that okay?”

Hyunggu nodded but he still flinched when Changgu’s cold fingers touched his face. He hoped he hadn’t just walked himself into an ambush.

Changgu pulled his hand back after a moment and examined the boy’s cheek. “There. You’d never even know it was bruised,” he said. 

Hyunggu prodded at his cheek and, sure enough, it didn’t hurt. “Thank you,” he mumbled.

Changgu smiled softly. A bruised cheek was an unfortunately common occurrence around the woods. “Is there anything else?” he asked carefully. 

“No, that’s it,” Hyunggu said, “he kicked me out before he could do anything else.”

Yanan crossed his arms. “He made a big show coming back to get you the other day and now he just kicked you out like you’re nothing. What a despicable creature,” he muttered. Changgu shot Yanan a look and stood up straight. “If anything happens again, Yanan knows how to find me,” he said before taking his leave.

Hyunggu was still in shock. He couldn’t believe Yuto had done something like this to him. It was so out of character. 

Yanan sat on the edge of the bed next to Kino. He reached out and gently took one of the boy’s hands in his own. His skin was soft and warm, nothing like his own. He never usually paid attention to things like this but he never spent enough time with someone to be able to pay attention. “You can stay here as long as you need to,” he said. 

“He’ll come looking for me,” Hyunggu said, shaking his head, “I should leave in the morning so he doesn’t come for you.” He truly wasn’t sure if he could go back home.

“Do you really want to go back to him? He hit you and threw you out of your own home and you want to go back to him? I can’t tell you what to do but I really don’t think that’s a good idea,” Yanan said gently, “and when did you start caring about me all of the sudden?”

“Where else am I supposed to go?” Hyunggu asked heatedly, “he can find me whenever the hell he wants to. I don’t want anyone dead over me.”

Yanan pulled his hand back. He forgot how firey Kino could be when he wanted to. “All of the sudden you care if I die? You know how dangerous I am and how easily your friend could kill me but now you don’t want that anymore?” he asked with a small smirk, “you could stay here. It would really show him how much he messed up if this is where he found you.”

“No, it wouldn’t,” Hyunggu argued, “he would just think you’d taken me against my will again. It wouldn’t end well for anyone.”

“He’d be able to trace what magic has been used on you. And he’ll see that it’s neither mine nor my friend’s,” Yanan said, standing up, “but if you want to go crawling back to him, good luck. You’ll be lucky if you make it out alive.”

“That wasn’t Yuto,” Hyunggu said defensively, “Yuto doesn’t act like that.” He didn’t want to admit that he was scared. 

Yanan took a deep breath so he didn’t snap. “But it was. And he did act like that. He hit you and he threw you out. That’s  _ not good _ . I know after all these years it’s hard to see his faults but you need to remember he specializes in black magic. He can’t control his anger or his possessiveness and he took it out on you and tried to blame it all on you. That’s evil. And as someone who practices red magic, I know evil when I see it.”

Hyunggu bit his lip, then winced when his chest throbbed. “He’s looking for me,” he said quietly, “he’ll be here soon.”

“Let him come,” Yanan growled, “I want to see the look on his face when he realizes I’ve treated you better in the past few hours than he has in your entire life.”

“I don’t want you or your friends to get hurt again,” Hyunggu said. He was fighting back tears now. The pain was becoming unbearable, which meant Yuto was getting close.

“Don’t worry about us, we can handle our own,” Yanan said. He heard Hongseok moving around his living room. His friend could also sense the dark mage rapidly approaching the house. Yanan sat back down when he saw Kino’s face scrunch up in pain. “It’s okay,” he said soothingly, “we aren’t going to let him hurt you anymore.”

Hyunggu cried out in pain just as the door to the house slammed open. “Where is he?” Yuto roared. 

Yanan ignored Yuto in favor of trying to help Kino. There wasn’t much he could do to stop the pain but at least he could physically comfort the boy. He quickly pulled him into his lap and held him close. He hated how useless his magic was in this situation. He would have been just as well off being a mere mortal.

Yuto stormed through the house until he found the incubus, once again using and abusing his poor Hyunggu. At least the boy was still conscious this time. 

“Don’t come any closer!” Yanan cried, tightening his grip on Kino, “you’re the reason he’s like this and I will not let you continue to hurt him and manipulate him.” Meanwhile Hongseok snuck up behind Yuto and tied both of his wrists back with thick bands of fire. Even if he broke out of them, they would at least burn his skin.

Yuto broke the bands like nothing and whirled around to face the pyromancer. “You,” he said threateningly, advancing with his hand outstretched, “I have had enough of you.” “Yuto, stop!” Hyunggu cried. 

Hongseok created a wall of fire, that wouldn’t damage the house, in front of him and took off for the door. If he could draw the mage far enough away from the house, Yanan would be able to escape with Kino out the back.

“Yuto, please, I’m sorry,” Hyunggu sobbed. His chest hurt so badly. The dark mage whirled back around and pulled Hyunggu to him. “I have been letting your shit go for far too long,” he snarled, “I should have left you to freeze in those woods.” His hand started to tighten around Hyunggu’s neck.”

Yanan stood up and lunged toward the pair. “Don’t hurt him! I’m the one that brought him here. I’m the one that convinced him to come with me. If you’re going to be angry at someone, be angry at the person who’s actually dangerous,” he said, grabbing onto the mage’s arm.

Hyunggu choked and scratched at Yuto’s forearm, trying to get the older man to let him go. Yuto yanked his shirt open and pressed his other palm to the amulet. Immediately, Hyunggu felt weak and dizzy.

Yanan dug his nails into Yuto’s arm watching as his fingers slowly began to release themselves from Kino’s throat. When he dropped the boy, Yanan quickly wrapped his arms around him and pulled him away. He did his best to maneuver Kino behind him to create a physical barrier between him and Yuto.

Hyunggu’s eyes rolled back in his head as he slumped to the floor. Yuto smirked and turned his attention to the incubus. It was time to get rid of this pest for good. 

Yanan’s chest heaved. “How dare you trick him into thinking you love him? You are so quick to call people dangerous when you’re the one they should be hiding from. You don’t deserve the power you hold and you especially don’t deserve Kino. I would tell you to rot in hell but your kind deserve worse than that,” he spat.

Yuto’s eyes darkened and his smirk widened. “I’ll tell you a secret,” he taunted, “since I’m going to kill you in a minute anyway. I don’t love him at all. I don’t even like him! All he is, all he’s been, and all he’ll ever be is an energy source.”

“Why him when you could have someone so much more powerful? You could have any red magic wielder at your fingertips and yet you picked a lowly fae. How stupid of you,” Yanan growled, “and even more stupid of you to think you can kill me. You’re too weak to kill me and you always will be.”

“The fun thing about the fae,” Yuto said, “is they’re so dependent if you raise them from childhood. So naive and gullible. They’ll believe anything about anyone and won’t question a single thing. It’s so easy to meld them into the perfect little source. Easy to dispose of too.”

“You’re not going to lay another finger on him! You’re never even going to see him again after today. You’re going to go back to whatever hole you crawled out of to rot until you’re too weak to move again,” Yanan screamed. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Hongseok waiting in a cloud of smoke by the door. 

“You can’t keep me away from him, especially if you’re dead,” Yuto spat. He summoned a ball of bright white fire into the palm of his hand. 

Hongseok summoned the ball of fire to his own hands. The force of it being absorbed into his palms knocked him backwards onto the ground. Yanan took that opportunity to leap toward the mage and dig his nails into his arm again. His strength was already sapped and he could only hold him off for so much longer.

Yuto fought against the incubus’ grip. Having sapped the energy from Hyunggu was giving him an advantage in the fight and he soon managed to escape. 

Yanan fell back against the wall when the mage broke free. He didn’t have enough energy to fight back anymore. Maybe Yuto would really be able to kill him today.

Yuto stumbled to his feet and surveyed the scene with a laugh. a. “Not so strong now, are we?” he taunted. 

Yanan hated this. He was used to being the one in charge and feared, not the one being taunted by someone more powerful than him. He knew his glamours wouldn’t work on Yuto but it was the last thing he had and he would be damned if he didn’t try it. 

Yuto looked down at the pair disdainfully. “A weak boy for a weak wizard,” he said, snorting derisively. “It’s just about abandonment season anyway. You can keep the weakling. I’ll find myself a new source that’s worth something.”

“I’m not a wizard,” Yanan bit out, “and I’m not weak.” He pushed himself to stand up straight and glared at the mage.

Yuto had to laugh at that. “You couldn’t defeat me with all the magic in your arsenal,” he said, “I’m not wasting any more time on a pathetic little fae whore. I should have left him ages ago. You can have your fun with him now.” He whirled himself into the shadows and away with a last dying cackle. 

Yanan sank to the floor to catch his breath. After a minute it dawned on him that Kino was still laying in a ball on the floor. He crawled over to the boy and carefully pulled him back into his lap. 

Hyunggu groaned weakly as he was maneuvered around. His entire body was on fire and he just wanted to cry. Why was this happening to him?

“You’re safe now,” Yanan murmured, “he’s gone and he’s not coming back.” He glanced up when Hongseok reappeared in the doorway.

“Hurts,” Hyunggu mumbled eventually, “all hurts.”

“Hongseok, go get Changgu,” Yanan said. His friend nodded and left the room again. “It’s not going to hurt for much longer. You’ll be okay soon,” he assured. He leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes for a moment. 

Hyunggu could feel his cheeks getting wet. When did he start crying?

Yanan opened his eyes when he felt a drop of water hit his hand. He frowned when he noticed Kino crying. “Don’t cry. He’s gone and the pain will be gone soon too,” he said soothingly. 

“It’s killing me,” Hyunggu murmured, eyes still closed, “I think the amulet is killing me.”

Yanan moved Kino’s shirt to the side and saw the amulet was still a bright red. There was nothing he could do to help but he laid his palm over it regardless. 

Hyunggu cried out in pain when the incubus touched him. He could feel his energy draining, even if the other man wasn’t intentionally pulling it.

Yanan pulled his hand away quickly. Thankfully Changgu arrived not soon after and knelt down next to them. “Put him in bed. You’re going to make everything worse if you keep holding him,” Changgu said. Yanan pulled himself to his feet and laid Kino in bed before stepping back and leaning heavily against the wall.

The pain subsided only marginally once Hyunggu was in bed, and he was sure that was more from being able to relax than anything. “He always said the amulet was to protect me but I don’t think that was true,” he said quietly.

“Of course it wasn’t. Anything he does is purely for his own gain,” Yanan said flatly. Changgu did everything he could for Kino, which wasn’t much considering he wasn’t powerful enough to reverse the effects of the amulet. 

It hurt almost more than the amulet did, learning that Yuto wasn’t the person he always thought he was. Hyunggu wanted to hate the incubus for bringing this all to light but, deep down, he knew it was his own fault for being so naive.

Changgu stepped back from the bed with a shake of his head. “I’m not strong enough to help him,” he said sadly, “but I know someone who is.” “Just do whatever it takes to get rid of this damn amulet before it kills him,” Yanan bit out.

Now that Hyunggu was thinking about it, were all of his friends evil like Yuto? He hadn’t thought that any of them had a mean bone in their bodies, but now he didn’t know.

“Hongseok, keep an eye on the house and make sure he doesn’t come back. Changgu, you stay here with Kino. I need to go find someone,” Yanan said. He pushed himself off of the wall onto unsteady legs. He hated feeling this weak. 

It wasn’t long before Hyunggu fell back into a catatonic state. The amulet was visibly beginning to bleed into his veins and they didn’t have much time at all before it would be too late.

Yanan typically didn’t restore his energy by stealing from nature but sometimes he had no choice. It never lasted as long because he practiced red magic but it was just enough to get him back on his feet. Now that his mind was clear, he knew exactly who Changgu was talking about and went to seek him out. He was their last chance at saving Kino and he hoped this worked. 

Hyunggu moved in and out of consciousness throughout the night. He was doing his best to hold on. He didn’t want to die, not like this.

Yanan sighed when he finally reached the moss covered hut. He hadn’t been here in years and as he approached the house, he began to remember why. The force of the green magic was so strong he couldn’t get any closer than the front steps. “What is an incubus doing on my doorstep?” came the rough voice from inside. “I need your help to save a fae. A dark mage put a curse on him and none of us are strong enough to reverse it,” Yanan called back.

Hyunggu’s eyes were wet the next time he woke and his hand tightened around Changgu’s. The healer was laying next to him, doing everything he could to stem the outward flow of magic.

“And why do you want him healed?” the voice asked. “Because I will not stand to have a dark mage ruin innocent lives. He’s going to keep drawing power from this boy and kill him if we don’t stop him soon,” Yanan said, “E'Dawn, please. We don’t have much time.” The door swung open and Yanan stumbled back a few steps. 

A heavy darkness hung over the stone house, enshrouding everything in gloom. This must be the place. Taking a deep breath, Wooseok stepped out of the woods and knocked on the door.

Changgu jumped a mile when someone suddenly knocked on the door. He laid closer to Kino and continued to whisper soothingly to him. Hongseok stood just on the inside of the door, fireball already built in his hand. “Who are you? And why are you here?” he yelled.

“Jung Wooseok,” the white mage called back tentatively, “I’m a friend of Kino’s. Please, I know he’s here.”

Hongseok scoffed. “You’re not welcome here. I suggest you go back where you came from and leave us alone,” he growled. The fireball burned hot, ready to be thrown if this Wooseok tried to break in. 

“I’m not here to hurt him,” Wooseok replied, “Yuto disappeared and all of us are really worried about Kino.”

“That’s what your friend said too and then he almost killed him. I don’t buy your bullshit and I don’t have time to,” Hongseok snapped. He hoped Yanan came back soon. 

“He  _ isn’t _ our friend,” Wooseok said, “he’s had all of us trapped for years too. It’s been all we could do to keep Kino as safe as we could. I’m a white mage, I couldn’t hurt him if I wanted to.”

Hongseok paused. He unlocked the door and opened it slowly, not bothering to extinguish the fireball. “If you lay a finger on him, I won’t hesitate to kill you,” he threatened. 

Wooseok nodded and ducked inside the house, immediately seeking out Kino. His heart broke when he saw the faerie lying, pallid and cold, on the bed with the healer. “What happened?” he asked weakly.

Hongseok locked the door behind them before moving to stand in the doorway to the bedroom. “The amulet Yuto made is starting to kill him,” Changgu replied in a small voice, “there’s not much I can do to stop it but Yanan went to get someone who can.”

Wooseok bit his lip. “I can stop it from progressing,” he said, turning to glance at the dragon in the doorway, “but I can’t reverse it completely.”

Hongseok’s lips pulled back into a snarl. “Make it quick,” he said after a moment, “I’ll know if you’re lying.”

Wooseok sat on the bed next to Kino and carefully pushed the shirt all the way off his shoulder. He reached out with both hands and cupped them around the bleeding black lines, slowly but surely using his magic to push the curse back into the amulet. Once it was contained, he kept his hands there tightly.

Hongseok watched closely but Wooseok kept his promise. He was just about to ask what the next step was when the door swung open again. He didn’t even need to turn around to know that Yanan had found who he was looking for. He shrunk back to the opposite end of the room, trying to get away from the force of the green magic. 

Hyunggu slowly regained consciousness once the curse was again contained in the amulet. “Wooseokie?” he mumbled, seeing the man over him.

“Who are you?” Yanan asked when he saw the strange man leaning over Kino with his hands on the amulet. “That’s Jung Wooseok. You don’t need to be worried about him,” E'Dawn replied. He walked across the room to the bed and surveyed the scene in front of him.

Hyunggu felt the pain subside completely as soon as the other faerie walked into the room. His magic was so strong that he didn’t even need to be nearby for Hyunggu to know that he was the true most powerful being in the woods.

“You can both let go of him,” E'Dawn said gently, “he’s not going to die.” Changgu regretfully let go of Kino’s hand and moved so he was out of the way. 

Wooseok wasn’t so trusting but he complied, letting go of Kino’s chest and stepping back from the bed. He kept a close eye on the new faerie.

“You don’t have to be so nervous Wooseokie. I won’t hurt your friend,” E'Dawn assured. He sat on the edge of the bed and ran his fingers over the amulet engraved in Hyunggu’s chest, absorbing the magic from it into his own hands. 

Hyunggu gasped as he felt his chest lightening. He had never felt this much of his own magic before. It was like his entire body was humming. 

When the amulet had completely disappeared, E'Dawn pulled his hand away. “You’ve made a very powerful enemy,” he commented. 

“I wasn’t going to let him hurt me,” Hyunggu said, “and he was clearly hurting me for much longer than I realized.”

“You should never trust anyone that practices black magic and you should barely trust people that practice red magic,” E'Dawn said, glancing up at the incubus and pyromancer standing in the corner, “no matter what they claim to be or how they claim to be different.”

“He raised me,” Hyunggu said quietly, “how was I not to trust him?”

“He raised you to do what he needed. He tricked you into becoming something you weren’t meant to be. No one blames you for what happened and no one should,” E'Dawn said, “why don’t you come stay with me for a little while? You can explore nature properly but you’ll be somewhere he cannot find you.”

“How am I to trust you either?” Hyunggu questioned, “I don’t even know your name.”

The faerie smiled. “My name is E'Dawn. And although I know your real name, I know not everyone in this room does so I’ll continue to call you Kino,” he said, “and I don’t blame you for being weary of me. But my job is to protect my kind from any evil that plagues them and that includes the mage that claimed to be your friend.”

“That isn’t fair,” Hyunggu said, “you have a power over me that I don’t have over you. I’m done with that.”

E'Dawn sighed. “My real name is Hyojong,” he revealed, knowing no one in the room was powerful enough to use it against him. “I help to keep the peace and balance in this forest and to do that I need to get rid of any dark magic that infiltrates it. I also need to keep you safe so that our kind doesn’t die out.”

“He disappeared,” Wooseok piped up, “none of us know where he is. The house is completely destroyed. Our other friends are out looking for Kino right now, actually, I need to go find them.”

“Dark magic always leaves a trail,” Hyojong said, “I can’t protect you if you choose to stay in this house but you would be protected from him at or near my own.”

Hyunggu was nervous about trusting this other faerie who seemed so powerful, but Hyojong seemed certain that he would decide to go anyway. “Alright,” he finally agreed, “but not tonight. I think everyone’s exhausted.”

“I will be back first thing in the morning then. Unfortunately, there’s not a lot I can do to help you here but that will change tomorrow,” Hyojong said, “Yanan, I will know if you laid even a finger on him when I come back.” 

Yanan. So that was the Incubus’ name. Hyunggu was glad he finally had something to call him. “I’m going to go retrieve our friends,” Wooseok said, getting up, “I’m sure they’d both like to see Kino before he heads underground for good.”

Hyojong nodded. “What you do between now and tomorrow is your own affair. I will see you in the morning, Kino,” he said. After that he took his leave and no sooner did he leave the house than did Yanan sink to his knees.

Wooseok and Hyunggu talked quietly for a moment before the white mage took his leave. He needed to find Jinho and Shinwon and bring them both back to the stone house before daybreak.

Yanan sent Changgu and Hongseok home with a wave of his hand. He leaned back against the wall and took a deep breath. He missed when everything in this forest was quiet and peaceful and he could bring home a new person each night. Hopefully, it went back to that soon. 

Hyunggu hated all of this. He should have sat there and just let Yuto kill him. There wouldn’t be any problems then. 

Yanan couldn’t bring anyone home with Kino still here so he opted to wait until the morning. He pulled himself to his feet a few moments later and walked slowly towards the door. 

Hyunggu’s fingers found the scar of the amulet and traced over it hollowly. “Do you need energy?” he asked as Yanan got up to leave the room.

“Yes, but I’ll be okay until the morning. I don’t think you’d want to be here when I bring someone back,” Yanan said with a small smirk. 

“You can do it just through contact too right?” Hyunggu asked, “that’s how you did it to me before.”

“Yes I can, but it doesn’t work as well. Neither does stealing from nature but desperate times call for desperate measures,” Yanan said. 

“You can take if you want,” Hyunggu offered, “I’d rather you be strong enough to protect me if he shows up, because I won’t be either way.”

Yanan snorted. “Are you crazy? E'Dawn will know the moment he shows up here and he’ll kill me without hesitation. I’d rather just wait. Yuto isn’t going to come back tonight,” he said. 

“I’ll tell him I told you to,” Hyunggu said, “which he probably already knows anyway. I’m more scared of Yuto than I am of you or E'Dawn.”

“You shouldn’t be scared of E'Dawn at all. He’s a little out there ‘cause he lives alone most of the time but he’s still a faerie,” Yanan said. He turned back to the bed and paused. “Are you sure you’re feeling good enough for this? You’ve been through a lot today, Kino.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Hyunggu said, “I’d rather feel like shit than have no one strong enough to protect us.”

Yanan sighed. He walked over to the bed and sat on the edge. With one hand, he intertwined his fingers with Kino’s and laid the other across his chest. It wasn’t enough but it was all he was risking tonight. 

Hyunggu exhaled and relaxed as he felt some of his energy begin to flow into Yanan. It was almost intoxicating now that he wasn’t trying to fight it. 

When Yanan’s head had cleared and he felt strong enough to walk without risk of falling over, he dropped Kino’s hand and pulled away. 

Hyunggu let his hand fall to the bed. “Better now?” he asked softly. 

“A little,” Yanan said, “I’ll be okay as long as I go out in the morning. I hate when my schedule gets ruined, it messes everything up.” He would have crossed his arms had he not been using them to push himself off the bed instead. 

Hyunggu hummed. He was sure it could be frustrating to not have any energy. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. 

“For my routine getting messed up?” Yanan asked, slightly amused, “if anything, it’s that mage’s fault but I’ll get even with him eventually.”

“If I hadn’t run, none of us would be in this mess,” Hyunggu said quietly, “it’d just be another dead faerie and who cares about that?”

“Do you understand how detrimental that would have been to the forest?” Yanan asked, “either way, E'Dawn would have gotten involved before anything too serious happened to you.”

“Yuto was actively killing me and E'Dawn had no idea until you went to get him,” Hyunggu pointed out, somehow knowing that was the truth, “how detrimental could it really have been?”

“Everyone who practices green magic has an impact on the earth, and more importantly the forest they live in,” Yanan said, “there’s always supposed to be a balance and if that balance gets thrown off, it leads to chaos and the addition of black and even red magic to the mix.”

“He was suppressing most of my magic with the amulet,” Hyunggu said, “I already wasn’t having any impact. You should have left me in the clearing.”

Yanan sighed. “Look, I don’t have the time or patience to play these games. This is where we are now and tomorrow morning you’ll be free to live your life like you were supposed to and I’ll be able to go back to living mine,” he said. 

“I’ll be trapped with another super powerful fae and out of your hair, you mean,” Hyunggu said petulantly. Why did he even care so much?

“You won’t be trapped. E'Dawn won’t force you to stay but why wouldn’t you? You’d be safe from him,” Yanan said, “and the only reason I need you out of my hair is so that I can start bringing people here again.”

“The only way I’d be safe is if I never left, so I would be trapped, really,” Hyunggu said, “the fae aren’t really meant to stay together communally. Me staying with E'Dawn will probably be torture for him.”

“Well I guess you’ll find out tomorrow,” Yanan said tiredly, “why don’t you get some rest now? You obviously need it and I would like to get a few hours of sleep before my house is full of people again.”

Hyunggu hummed then had a sudden realization. “This is your bed,” he said, “oh my god, this is your bed! I’m so sorry!” He hurried to get up and tidy himself. 

Yanan chuckled. He grabbed Kino’s arm and easily maneuvered the boy to lay down again. “You’ll be more comfortable here and I don’t want E'Dawn up my ass if he finds you asleep on the couch in the morning,” he said. 

“I’ve already taken so much,” Hyunggu protested, “I don’t mind the couch, really.”

Yanan just rolled his eyes and walked towards the door. “The more we argue, the less sleep I get. And I’m grumpy when I don’t get enough sleep,” he said, “Goodnight, Kino.”

Hyunggu felt really bad, but Yanan didn’t even give him a chance to protest. He laid back down in the bed again. He was lonely and scared, two things uncommon for the fae. He didn’t like it at all. 

Yanan was grateful when Kino didn’t protest again. He stretched out on his couch and was well on his way to falling asleep the moment his eyes closed. 

Hyunggu fell asleep eventually, but it was intermittent and plagued by nightmares. Hopefully, being around Hyojong’s magic would put an end to that issue. 

Yanan’s eyes flew open when he heard Kino gasp loudly. He tried to go back to sleep but he couldn’t when he started to hear sniffles. With a groan, he stood up and slowly entered the bedroom.

Hyunggu flinched when the bedroom door opened, but it was just Yanan. He stayed quiet, hoping maybe the incubus would think he was asleep, but he couldn’t help his sniffles. 

“Kino, what’s going on? Why are you crying? He’s gone now and he’s not coming back,” Yanan said, voice gruff from sleep. 

“I keep having nightmares,” Hyunggu said miserably, “they’re terrifying.”

Yanan actually felt bad for the poor boy. “I’m sorry. There’s nothing much I can do about that. Do you want me to have Changgu come back?” he asked. 

“No, no, I’ll be okay,” Hyunggu said, “I’m just looking back on my entire life and realizing how he had always really been cruel to me and I never saw it.”

“I really am sorry,” Yanan said, “you didn’t deserve how he treated you.”

Hyunggu sniffled again. “I don’t know how I never saw it,” he said, “I was really never afraid of him until yesterday.”

“It’s part of his deceptive tricks. E'Dawn even said it himself that no one blames you,” Yanan said. He took a hesitant seat on the edge of the bed. 

“They should,” Hyunggu said, “I was so  _ stupid  _ and now he’s more dangerous than ever.”

“We’ll stop him,” Yanan said confidently, “he can’t kill me and I’ll be damned if I let him best me again.”

“So many people are going to get hurt because of me,” Hyunggu said, biting his lip, “that’s the last thing I wanted to have happen.”

“If it wasn’t you, it would have been someone else. Dark magic doesn’t use logic, Kino,” Yanan said, “and we’re going to make sure that no one else gets hurt because of him.”

“I just feel so...used and dirty,” Hyunggu said, “I trusted him with everything and all he ever did was take advantage of me.”

Yanan sighed. He really didn’t know how to help Kino, comfort wasn’t his forté. “I’m really sorry but at least you’re away from him forever now,” he said. 

“I hope so,” Hyunggu said quietly, “thank you, for all your help.”

Yanan held back a laugh. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t admit he did all of this for petty revenge. “Don’t worry about it,” he said instead. 

Hyunggu sighed and settled back down to sleep. He just wanted this all to settle.

“Do you, uh, need anything else?” Yanan asked quietly. He wasn’t even really sure what else he could do to help.

“No, I’m okay,” Hyunggu said, “thank you.” He closed his eyes and hunkered down.

Yanan nodded and left the room. He collapsed onto the couch but couldn’t fall asleep again. Why was Yanan even so concerned with the small fae he wouldn’t ever see again after tomorrow? Caring about people wasn’t in the job description so he didn’t know what was going on. 

When morning came, Wooseok had finally returned to the tiny hut with Jinho and Shinwon in tow. He hoped Hyunggu was still there.

Yanan jumped when he heard people outside of the hut. He opened the door slowly but relaxed when he saw Wooseok standing there. The other two must be friends. “He’s in the bedroom,” he said. 

Hyunggu woke up to Wooseok standing over him. He sat up and rubbed his eyes before realizing that Jinho and Shinwon were there as well. “Hyung,” he said weakly.

Yanan stayed out of the way. He felt like a stranger in his own home. Just a few more hours, he kept reminding himself, just a few more hours. 

Hyunggu hugged Jinho tightly. “I’m so sorry you got hurt, baby,” Jinho said quietly.

Yanan didn’t mean to eavesdrop but it was hard with his sharp sense of hearing. Eventually, he decided he didn’t want to be around the small group anymore and left the house to take a walk through the woods. 

Hyunggu was glad to know that Jinho and Shinwon hadn’t been working with Yuto either. This entire experience had made him question everything in his life and knowing that his friends were genuine made him feel more secure.

Yanan hated being this close to people but not being able to do anything about it. He decided to climb a tree and sit out of sight among the branches. It almost felt normal, almost. A little while later he felt a chill run through his whole body. E'Dawn was on his way.

“Wooseokie told us you’re going underground,” Jinho said, “you have to promise to stay safe, okay?”

Hyojong walked slowly through the woods. He knew the incubus had gotten sick of playing host, considering he was off hiding in the forest. What was even less surprising was the number of people gathered around Kino’s bed when he got to the house. 

Both Jinho and Shinwon cringed back when Hyojong finally arrived at the house. While suggestive magic like theirs interacted more neutrally with fae magic, it was still too aggressive for them to not feel the effects, especially Jinho’s.

“I’m glad your friends found you,” Hyojong commented, “you’re not banned from seeing them when you come with me. I just cannot extend the same protections to them.”

That made Hyunggu relax a little bit. He had been worried that he would never be able to see his friends again. Carefully, he got up out of Yanan’s bed and fixed his clothes.

“Are you ready?” Hyojong asked. He stood in the doorway to wait. There was no rush to get Kino back to his home as long as he was with him.

Hyunggu nodded. “I just want to make sure I thank Yanan first,” he said. 

“I don’t think he’ll be back while I’m here,” Hyojong said, “I’m sure you’ll run into him at some point and you can thank him then.”

Hyunggu frowned. Despite their rough beginnings, Yanan had sacrificed a lot to help him and he wanted to make sure the incubus knew he appreciated it. 

“You’ll see him again soon,” Hyojong said knowingly, “you’ll be able to wander the woods again when you’re feeling better. And it’s a lot easier to find someone in these woods than some people think.”

Hyunggu sighed but agreed. Better safe than sorry, he supposed. He turned around and hugged all of his friends tightly. 

Hyojong waited until all the goodbyes were said before leading Hyunggu from the house. “I don’t own you and I don’t control you. I advise that you don’t explore too much until I can be sure there is no residual of the dark magic still affecting you. Of course, you can leave whenever you’d like but I cannot protect you as well,” he explained as they walked.

Hyunggu listened carefully. He was grateful that Hyojong was opening his home at all, and he said so. “I know it’s not typical for fae to live together, so thank you,” he said sincerely. 

Hyojong smiled softly. “I know it’s only temporary and if it helps us find a way to vanquish the dark mage, I’m willing to make an exception to the rules,” he said. Across the forest, Yanan finally found someone to bring home, to his once again empty house. 

“If someone told me a week ago that this would happen, I’d call them crazy and walk away,” Hyunggu said, shaking his head, “I still can’t believe it.”

“He took advantage of the power he held over you,” Hyojong said, “it is unfortunate but it is almost always the case with those who practice dark magic. They will never love. They will never find anyone they truly care about. All they have are their own goals and ambitions. The only thing separating them from someone who practices red magic is their lack of humanity.”

“I don’t know anything about my own culture or my own magic,” Hyunggu said sadly, “and I didn’t even realize he had been suppressing all of that until you lifted the curse yesterday.”

Hyojong smiled sadly. “If I teach you everything there is to know, you will never be able to be independent again. That being said, I can impart some advice to you,” he said, “the most important of that is that the only thing you can trust is nature. Listen to it. It will never lie, trick, or deceive you. And that goes for others who practice green magic.” 

“I’m not a child anymore,” Hyunggu said, “I shouldn’t still be practicing how to control my magic.”

“I understand that but unfortunately you were under his control for a very long time. It’s not going to take years to master but it will take more adjusting. I’m confident that you will pick everything up quickly,” Hyojong said.

Hyunggu sighed. He just didn’t know. Yuto had never made him feel weak, but there had always been an understanding that the fae and anyone who practiced green magic was just inherently the weakest class.

Hyojong led them through the trees and into a large clearing. “My home is on the edge of the field almost to the other tree line,” he said, “this area is entirely protected and that protection gradually declines the further away you get.”

Hyunggu had to gasp. The area around the house was absolutely stunning. He had never felt more alive anywhere before in his life. 

Hyojong smiled. “Anything the light touches is safe for you to explore,” he said, “I’m not going to be far but come find me if you need something.”

“Can you show me where the kitchen is?” Hyunggu asked sheepishly, “I haven’t eaten in like two days.”

“Sure, follow me,” Hyojong said. He led Hyunggu across the clearing and to his house. “Anything that’s mine is yours until you get on your feet.”

“Thank you so much,” Hyunggu said gratefully, “I used to make and sell potions and elixirs so I promise I’ll start up again and pay you back every penny.”

“If that was something you enjoyed doing, I recommend taking a look around these woods and experimenting with what you find. It’s going to be very different from what you’re used to,” Hyojong said. He knelt down next to the small fire pit he cooked over and gently coaxed a small fire to grow on the wood sitting in the bottom. 

Hyunggu found a seat on a small stump nearby the fire. He would have to figure out where to set up a small cot, and how to make a small cot, but just having food was a good enough start.

Hyojong moved a pot over the stove and start to make a soup for them. It was a hearty soup using vegetables and roots grown around his house. 

Hyunggu watched Hyojong, trying to memorize what he was doing. He really wanted to contribute while he was here. 

Hyojong didn’t even notice Hyunggu watching him until the soup was almost done. “Don’t worry about trying to memorize everything. It’ll all come naturally to you once you start to understand your own magic,” he said. 

“I don’t even know how to cook,” Hyunggu admitted, “I’m not even trying to memorize the magic yet.”

“Well, that’s something I can actually teach you,” Hyojong said, “tomorrow when you’re exploring, bring back some ingredients and I’ll help you.”

Hyunggu nodded eagerly. He wanted nothing more than to help out.

Hyojong chuckled quietly. He got two bowls and ladled some of the soup into each. He wanted Hyunggu to eat before he started asking him more questions.

Hyunggu took the bowl and ate like a man starved. He hadn’t realized just how hungry he was. 

Hyojong refilled Hyunggu’s bowl silently. “You can have as much as you want. You won’t get sick from this even though you haven’t eaten recently,” he said. 

“It’s only been two days,” Hyunggu said, “it’s not like I’ve been starved for weeks.” He did shovel down the second bowl though. 

“I know but you’d be surprised how finicky mortal bodies are,” Hyojong said. When he had finished he set his own bowl aside. “I’m sorry to do this to you but I do have to ask you some things.”

Hyunggu finished the last of his stew and set his bowl aside as well. Might as well get this over with. “Ask away.”

“Firstly, has there been anyone other than Yuto that has hurt you? I know you spent quite a bit of time around Yanan and by extension Hongseok,” Hyojong asked. 

“Yanan tried, once,” Hyunggu said, “he ambushed me with a friend of his. The amulet wasn’t resistant to blue magic, because of Jinho and Shinwon, so he was able to force me to go with them just by commanding it. Yanan tried to take energy from me, but I got him to touch the amulet so Yuto came and rescued me.”

Hyojong hummed. That was odd, especially considering Yanan was the one who came to him begging him to save Hyunggu. He supposed it was the incubus’ selfish nature. “And now for Yuto. I need you to tell me as much as possible about him, what exactly he’s done, and if you know where he possibly could have gone,” he said. 

“I - I don’t know,” Hyunggu said uncertainly, “I genuinely thought he was harmless until he hit me. He saved my life, raised me safely, so why would he ever want to hurt me? I had some knowledge of the - he called it a stigma, against black magic users, but I never thought it was really the truth. I don’t even know what he did to me because I had no idea that it was happening.”

Hyojong hummed. He did his best not to let his anger show; he didn’t want to scare Hyunggu. But seeing how black magic was beginning to affect his kind crossed the line. “I’m going to spend a few days here to make sure you get comfortable and acclimated and then I will be going to find him. I do not know how long I will be gone but you will be protected as long as I am alive,” he said. 

“He told Yanan he was going to find another fae child to take,” Hyunggu said, “and Wooseok said the house is destroyed with no signs of him left. I don’t think you’ll find him.”

Hyojong sighed. He needed to find Yuto sooner rather than later. “I’ll be able to track him down. He doesn’t realize it but he leaves a trail of magic in his wake,” he said. 

“I don’t want anyone else to get hurt,” Hyunggu said sadly, “I should have just sacrificed myself so he would stay under control.”

“He would not have stayed under control. When he grew sick of you or drained you of power, he would have moved onto the next person,” Hyojong said. 

“Maybe, but you guys would have had more time to defeat him without anyone else being at risk,” Hyunggu said, “I’m just a broken faerie. There are other people that are at risk now because someone decided to save the least worthy person in the entire forest.”

“You’re not broken,” Hyojong said soothingly, “and we’ll defeat him regardless of the circumstances.”

“I am!” Hyunggu said, “I’ve been trying to access my magic since we left Yanan’s and I haven’t felt or done  _ anything _ . I’m damaged and if I could go back and not run, I would, so that whatever poor child he’s going after now will be safe from him.”

Hyojong sighed. “I think we’re done with this for now,” he said, standing up, “you are free to come and go as you please and wander wherever. I’ll be here if anything should arise. I think some fresh air will do you good.”

As grateful as Hyunggu was that Hyojong was opening his home to protect him, he didn’t think he would be staying for very long anymore. Yuto was still out there, about to hurt yet another child, and Hyunggu wasn’t about to let that happen. 

Hyojong cleaned up the dishes and thanked the fire before extinguishing it. He disappeared into his house not much later, leaving Hyunggu to explore to his heart’s content. 

Hyunggu got up and started to wander the area around the house. His first mission was finding something comfortable to sleep on.

Hyojong rolled out a large map of the world on his kitchen table. This wasn’t any ordinary map. It was a map of all of the magical traces in the world. It rippled like water, but was dry to the touch, and it was colorful, like someone captured a rainbow in a piece of paper. Dark magic was very rare but it was always easier to find the spots of black when they popped up. And that was what he looked for. 

Hyunggu spent the afternoon constructing a hammock of vines and moss. By the time it was done, it was close to nighttime, but he was more than happy to just lay down and fall asleep. 

Hyojong poured over the map, scouring every corner. Eventually he found the spot, much smaller than he originally anticipated, in a mountain range to the north. It was much closer than he liked. 

Hyunggu didn’t sleep well, but he slept better than the night before. Fewer nightmares, probably because of Hyojong’s magic. When dawn broke, he quietly got up and set off. 

Yanan was sitting in his favorite tree, swinging his leg, and looking for his catch of the day. It was just like the good old days and he was so happy to be back in his routine.

Hyunggu didn’t have much of a plan once he was outside of Hyojong’s range. He supposed the best place to start would be the house. If Hyojong was right and there was a trail of dark magic, it would start there. 

Yanan paused when he heard footsteps. After a minute, he realized they sounded awfully familiar. He pulled his leg up in the tree and sat stock still. 

Hyunggu snuck through the woods as quickly and quietly as he could, not wanting to alert Hyojong or anyone else as to what he was doing. He skirted around the clearing and kept going towards the house. 

Yanan didn’t move, didn’t take a breath, didn’t even dare to blink. That was until it dawned on him where Kino was going. He leapt down from the tree and spun around. “Where the hell are you going?” he called. 

Hyunggu jumped nearly a mile in the air when Yanan suddenly appeared in front of him. “I’m just going to see if I can recover any of my things from the house,” he lied. 

Yanan sighed. “Let me come with you,” he said, “you don’t know what’s left of the curse there. Or if he’s waiting there.”

“No, he wouldn’t be,” Hyunggu said with certainty, “I’m not sure where he is, but I know he’s not there.” Why did Yanan have to interfere  _ now _ ?

“I don’t trust it. And I especially don’t trust him. I’ll stay out of your way, but if you go alone you could get hurt,” Yanan said. 

“Look, this is just...something I need to do by myself,” Hyunggu said, “you get it, right?”

“That crazy bastard almost killed the both of us and you want to just go back? And what’s E'Dawn supposed to think if you get cursed again?” Yanan asked. 

“My entire life just got destroyed in two days, Yanan,” Hyunggu said insistently, “if nothing else, I need closure.”

Yanan raised his hands. “Fine. I’m not your dad. But I’ll be the first one to tell you ‘I told you so’ when something goes wrong,” he said. He turned around to climb back up his tree. 

Hyunggu ducked his head and hurried off to the house, turning a few times to make sure Yanan wasn’t following him. Once he got there, he had no idea where to start. He poked around a bit, shifting stones to try and find any trace of Yuto’s magic. He shifted a larger stone and his eye was hit with a glint. He blinked and squinted to try and see what was there, but the shadow was too dark. When he stuck his hand into the opening to move the stone on top, his entire body was sucked forward into what appeared to be an underground tunnel.

Yanan didn’t like this at all. Staying far enough back, he followed Kino to the house. He waited at the edge of the trees until the boy disappeared. He gasped and raced across the clearing. He knew something was going to happen. 

Hyunggu pushed himself to his feet with a grunt and dusted himself off. “Yuto?” he called. His voice echoed down the tunnel. There was a wall behind him, so he started walking forward.

“Kino, what are you doing?” Yanan muttered to himself. He found the hole the boy disappeared into and carefully climbed down after him. 

Hyunggu could see a dim light at the end of the tunnel and kept walking toward it. “Yuto, I know you’re down here,” he called, “I just want to talk.” He gasped when a hand wrapped around his neck from behind and dragged him into the shadows and down a concealed hallway. 

Yanan started to get nervous when he lost Kino. “Kino? Kino!” he called, “where did you go?” He rushed down the damp hallway but couldn’t find the younger boy.

Hyunggu stumbled as he was dragged down the hallway. He had realized that the hand was just shadow and smoke, an enchanted extension of the dark mage. Finally, after what seemed like ages, Hyunggu was dragged into a dimly lit cavern. There, in the middle of the room seated on a throne of bones, was Yuto.

“Kino!” Yanan screamed. He didn’t know where the boy had gone. He raced down the hallway until he saw a small opening in the stone; squeezing through, he took off. 

Yuto looked skeletal and absolutely murderous. “You!” he roared, “you did this to me!” “And I can fix it!” Hyunggu said desperately. 

“Kino, where are you?” Yanan cried. Even as fast as he could run, it felt like the hallway was never ending. Even though he had perfect vision in the dark, it was getting harder to see the further down the tunnel he ran. 

Yuto was on Hyunggu faster than he could blink, grinning maniacally. “Oh, you’re going to,” he threatened. “On one condition,” Hyunggu said, “only me. Don’t hurt any more kids. Please.”

Yanan was so close. He could feel the black magic radiating through the hallway. It started to become easier to see and he ran even faster. “Kino!” he screamed. 

Yuto growled but relented. “Fine, you have my word,” he said. Moments later, Hyunggu slumped over. Just as they had been with Yanan, Hyunggu’s eyes went glassy and his body limp. Yuto inhaled deeply, his eyes fully black when he opened them again. He had full access to Hyunggu’s power now, not just the limited amount that the amulet had given him. When he heard yelling from the tunnel, he swiftly cloaked Hyunggu’s body in shadow and turned to face the intruder. 

Yanan eventually found himself standing in front of Yuto in a large cavern. “You!” he snarled, “what are you doing back? And what did you do to Kino?”

“Doing back?” Yuto scoffed, “this is  _ my  _ home, the realm of dark magic!” He sauntered over to Yanan. “And I haven’t done anything to precious Kino that he hasn’t asked for.”

Yanan took a few steps back. “He didn’t ask for anything! You’re a monster who hurt an innocent fae for nothing more than your own gain! Give him back and maybe I’ll consider letting you go,” he growled. 

Yuto had to laugh. “You really still think you can hurt me? After I’ve defeated you twice and you needed a fae to take death out of Kino’s chest? Are you truly still so naive, Yanan? For shame.”

Yanan snapped. He lunged towards Yuto, not sure what his goal was other than to cause as much harm as he could.

Yuto avoided Yanan easily, watching in amusement as the incubus slammed into the opposite wall. With Hyunggu’s power flowing through him now, he was practically invincible. 

Yanan grunted when he hit the wall. He spun around but didn’t move again. “If you’re so mighty, why don’t you kill me to prove it?” he asked.

“Okay,” Yuto said simply. He didn’t even have to move his hands for the shadows to pour out of the walls and wrap tightly around Yanan’s neck. 

Yanan gasped for air. His vision started to swim. Just before everything went black, he felt a strong presence approaching. E'Dawn was coming. 

Yuto could feel the faerie approaching rapidly as well, but he wasn’t worried. With Hyunggu’s magic now flowing through him, he could easily match E'Dawn in a fight. 

Hyojong raced down the hallway, an aura of light surrounding him so he could see. When he entered the cavern in found Yanan nearly shrouded in dark magic and could only feel Kino’s energy. “Yuto, release Yanan and Kino,” he said, no room for argument, “prove how powerful you are without stealing power that isn’t your own.”

“Hm, see, I would, but I don’t really want to,” Yuto said, pretending to think it over, “I have nothing to prove to you. Hyunggu gave himself to me truly this time. There’s nothing you can do about it.”

Hyojong walked around Yuto and calmly went to Yanan. He dissipated the shadows choking him and carefully lowered his limp body to the floor. He then stood up and turned back around. “You have manipulated Kino for many years. He wouldn’t have agreed if he truly knew your intentions,” he said.

“No?” Yuto said, “but he even came prepared with a deal. His life and soul for those of all the fae. Seems to me like he knew exactly what he was walking into.”

“Why are you doing this, Yuto?” Hyojong asked quietly, “you were never like this. What happened? You were powerful enough on your own. There was no need to start practicing dark magic.”

“You don’t choose black magic,” Yuto said coldly, “it chooses you. Black magic feeds on souls, but I could never truly bring myself to kill anyone. I can’t die, but I refuse to live miserable either.”

“I can help you. I can bring you back. Give you a life where you don’t suffer,” Hyojong said, “I don’t want to kill you, Yuto. There’s other ways to fix this.”

Yuto laughed. “You couldn’t kill me if you tried, faerie. I  _ am  _ black magic. I’m beyond saving.”

Hyojong stood up straight and walked towards Yuto. “Release Kino,” he demanded, “you are not entitled to his powers.” As he talked, he mentally reached out to Kino. “Hyunggu, don’t let him do this to you. Come back to me. We can’t lose you.”

“I am entitled to anything he has gifted me,” Yuto said, “and he has gifted me himself.” The shadows poured out from behind E'Dawn, reaching for his arms and throat.

Hyunggu wasn’t responding so Hyojong pulled his mind away. He wasn’t worried about the shadows, they wouldn’t be able to touch him. Instead he kept walking towards Yuto. He didn’t want to kill the mage but it looked like he had no choice. To try and trap him, he built a cage out of sturdy branches. Vines reached out for Yuto’s wrists and ankles. 

Yuto didn’t panic as vines started to surround him. A layer of shadow surrounded him, preventing anything from touching him directly. When he yelled, it rapidly expanded, breaking the vines and the cage in one go. 

Hyojong knew none of the natural magic he used was going to be able to break Yuto’s defenses. Moving swiftly across the gap, he grabbed onto Yuto’s wrist and began to drain his power from him, much like he did with the amulet. 

On the other side of the room, Hyunggu’s breath rattled in his throat. Hyojong draining Yuto’s magic meant that he was draining Hyunggu’s even faster. If he wasn’t careful, the faerie really would die. 

Hyojong growled when he realized Yuto was still stealing Hyunggu’s energy. He pulled his hand away and pointed it to the ceiling. A blinding light erupted from his hand, creating a small sun that lit up the entire cavern. 

Yuto growled and pushed more energy at E'Dawn. He was hoping to push the faerie back and break the beam of light. 

Hyojong stumbled back a step but quickly recovered. He aimed his other hand at Yuto and fired another beam of light straight at the mage. 

E'Dawn’s light shattered Yuto’s shield of energy, sending the dark mage stumbling backwards. He gritted his teeth, tapping himself further into Hyunggu’s energy, and called down a strike of black lightning to sever both beams. 

The beams shattered and rained down sparks of light that bounced on the stone floor before extinguishing. When the room was pitch black, Hyojong raced over to Hyunggu and knelt down next to the boy. He needed to find a way to break the connection and fast. He grabbed Hyunggu’s wrist and connected their minds again. “Hyunggu, you need to fight him. The whole world will be in danger if he takes much more of your power. Please, don’t let him beat you like this.”

Yuto smirked and stalked over to where Hyojong was kneeling over Hyunggu. “It’s cute of you to think that he could ever fight me off,” he cooed. 

Yanan blinked his eyes open when something hit his hand. He reached out and grabbed it. A surge of dark energy traveled through his body and he knew this was Yuto’s doing. Yuto. He looked up and saw the mage walking towards Hyojong and Kino. Using all of the energy he had left, he pulled himself to his feet and stalked towards the mage. Raising his arm, he swung as hard as he could, plunging the piece of dark magic deep into the mage’s back.

Yuto screamed, energy pouring out of him from every orifice. Within minutes, he had collapsed to the ground, unconscious and mortal as the day he was born. 

Yanan collapsed to his knees next to Yuto. He struggled to stay conscious but the dark magic coursing through his body made it difficult. It blurred his vision and made his head swim. He knew if he gave in to it all of the pain would go away but a small voice in the back of his mind forced him not too. 

Slowly, the black magic flooded out of the room, back into the depths it came from. The passageway closed and the ceiling began to crumble, leaving them all in a shallow pit in the middle of the sunny woods. 

Yanan’s vision went completely black and he was about to give in to unconsciousness when a hand wrapped around his upper arm. He felt the black magic slowly drain out of him and gasped when the last of it disappeared. 

Hyunggu’s consciousness slammed back into him all at once and he woke with a gasp. The first thing he noticed was the bright light around them, followed by Hyojong and Yanan around Yuto’s fallen body. “No!” he cried. 

Yanan flinched, causing himself to collapse to the ground, when he heard a loud noise. He barely registered what was going on. “He’s not dead,” Hyojong said quietly, “he just lost his magic.”

Hyunggu couldn’t even hear Hyojong over the pounding of the blood in his ears. He crawled over to Yuto and pulled the man’s head into his lap. “I’m so sorry,” he sobbed.

Yanan cracked his eyes open and saw Kino, nearly in tears, apologizing to Yuto. After everything the boy still sympathized with him. With a soft groan, he pushed himself to his knees and then to his feet. “Yanan, don’t tax yourself too quickly,” Hyojong said. Yanan brushed off the older man’s hand and attempted to climb out of the pit. As he reached up he noticed he had a line of dirt on his palm. He tried to wipe it off but it wasn’t coming off. It was almost like a birthmark but he had never had this before. 

Hyunggu couldn’t believe that they had killed Yuto. The dark mage hadn’t even done anything  _ wrong _ . All he’d done was defend himself. 

Yanan eventually made it out of the pit. He began walking through the woods back to his home. He just barely made it to bed before he collapsed again. 

“How  _ could _ you?” Hyunggu asked Hyojong, eyes teary and face wet. As he said it, Yuto stirred in his lap.

“He’s not dead,” Hyojong said again, “he just lost his magic. He’ll live but he won’t be stronger than a simple man.”

Yuto groaned softly and his eyes cracked open. “What happened?” he asked, voice no stronger than a whisper, “who...who are you?”

Hyojong sighed quietly. This was going to be a lot to explain. He sat down next to Yuto. “My name is Hyojong,” he said quietly, “you’ve been consumed by dark magic for a long time but someone helped you. I know this is all very overwhelming.”

“You...you don’t remember?” Hyunggu asked, shocked. “Everything that you did to me, you don’t even remember?!”

Hyojong laid a hand on Hyunggu’s shoulder. “Don’t rile him up,” he said gently, “Yuto, can you tell me the last thing you remember?”

Yuto sat up slowly, wracking his brain. “I was looking for a place to stay,” he said slowly, “I had been attacked by an incubus in my previous home and I didn’t feel safe there anymore. I found a spot that seemed safe enough and started building, but there was one stone that I couldn’t move. I-It was stuck or something. When I reached to dislodge it, I got pulled through a-and that’s it. I don’t remember anything else.”

Hyojong hummed. Dark magic had resided in this house for a long time. “Where was your old home?” he asked next.

Yuto looked around, recognizing the exact place he’d fallen through. “North,” he said, “but it’s probably collapsed by now. How long has it been?” When the faerie told him the year, he nearly passed out again. “It’s been over a century,” he said quietly. 

Hyojong sucked in a breath. It had been longer than he realized. “Why don’t you come back with me? You’ll have somewhere safe to stay until you go to live on your own again,” he suggested. 

“I’m dangerous,” Yuto said, “I hurt him and I don’t even remember doing it!” He gestured to the other boy sitting with them. “How do you know it won’t come back?”

“I know it won’t come back as long as you don’t find any more traces of black magic,” Hyojong said, “I’m sure you won’t go exploring for a long time as well.”

“I’m so sorry,” Yuto said, turning to the other boy, “whatever I did to you, I am so,  _ so _ sorry.” The boy took a deep breath. “It’s okay,” he said shakily, “it’s in the past now.”

“You and Kino knew each other for quite a long time. I think it would be good for you two to spend some time to get to know each other again,” Hyojong said. 

“We need to get away from the entrance,” Hyunggu said, “let’s go back to yours and figure things about from there. Where’s Yanan?”

“He left. I can’t sense him anymore so I assume he made it home,” Hyojong said. He stood up and extended a hand to help Hyunggu stand.

Hyunggu leaned on Hyojong, still feeling weak. Even so, he didn’t regret letting Yuto take him, not if it kept him from hurting any children. 

Hyojong grabbed Hyunggu’s wrist gently, letting some of his energy flow into the boy. Then he reached down for Yuto’s hand. 

Yuto let himself be helped up. It was strange, not feeling any magic flowing through him. He hated it. 

Hyojong carefully led the walk back to his house. It was a slow walk but it gave them all time to calm down. Once they got back, Hyojong helped the two boys onto the couch and went outside to cook. That way they could have some time to talk. 

Hyunggu sighed. He didn’t even know what to say to Yuto. It was probably better if the man didn’t know everything that he had done.

Hyojong took his time cooking. He wanted to make something that would restore the boys’ energy quickly. When he was done, he carried two bowls into the house.

“How long have we known each other?” Yuto asked finally. “Twenty years,” Hyunggu said, “you took me in when I was a baby.” Yuto nodded. The boy must be a fae then. 

Hyojong left the soup on the table with some utensils. He wanted to check on Yanan but he didn’t want to leave the boys alone while they were still awake. 

“Did I always hurt you?” Yuto asked cautiously. Hyunggu paused. “Yes,” he said slowly, “but I wasn’t aware of it until a few days ago. I thought you were protecting me.”

Hyojong took his map back out and rolled it out in the kitchen. He was glad to see the pocket of black magic near them to be gone but there was still another. 

“It didn’t hurt for very long,” Hyunggu assured Yuto. The man seemed so troubled; he just wanted to make him feel better. 

Hyojong sighed and ran his finger over the small black spot you could miss if you weren’t trained in reading this type of map. He wanted to investigate now but he couldn’t leave yet. 

“Well, you seem to be doing very well for being raised by the epitome of true evil,” Yuto joked weakly. Hyunggu smiled tightly. “I’m doing okay,” he replied. 

Hyojong sighed and rolled up the map. Checking on Yanan would have to wait. He put his map away and walked back into the living room. “I have to leave in a few days but my home is yours as long as you want to stay here,” he said. 

“I was thinking we would go find Yanan and make sure he’s okay,” Hyunggu said, “once we get some rest, of course.”

“Yuto won’t be able to resist his magic when he goes and I’m sure Hongseok won’t be happy to see him. I’m not sure if it will be wise to go,” Hyojong said gently.

“They have the upper hand now,” Hyunggu said. “And whatever they want to do to me, it seems like I deserve,” Yuto added. 

Hyojong sighed. “I cannot tell you what to do. However, I can recommend that you stay away from them until I get back because I won’t be able to protect you,” he said. 

Hyunggu exchanged a glance with Yuto. They both seemed to understand that they would be going as soon as Hyojong left. 

“I suggest if you do try to go anyway to bring one of your friends, preferably Wooseok,” Hyojong said. He knew Hyunggu was stubborn, but he hoped the boy was smart.

Hyunggu nodded. That would probably be smart. He was sure Yanan was angry. 

Hyojong did as much as he could for Hyunggu and Yuto while he was still home. A few days later, he couldn’t delay any longer. He imparted as much advice as he could and left for his trip to the North. 

As soon as Hyojong was gone, Hyunggu and Yuto headed off. They first went to find and recruit Wooseok then headed further into the woods to find Yanan. 

Yanan hadn’t felt like himself since the incident with Yuto. His magic had obviously been affected and he was getting worried. He hadn’t been able to bring anyone home and felt his power slowly draining. There was nothing Changgu had been able to do and there wasn’t much Hongseok needed to help him protect the house from so neither of his friends were around that often. 

Hyunggu took a deep breath before knocking on Yanan’s door. Yuto stood between him and Wooseok, biting his lip anxiously. 

Yanan had no idea who could be knocking on his door. Both of his friends just let themselves in. He stood on the other side of the door, not opening it yet. “Who’s there?” he called, trying to sound threatening. 

“It’s me,” Hyunggu called back uncertainly, “I wanted to come and check on you.”

Yanan tore the door open angrily ready to lay into Kino for coming back when he saw Yuto standing next to him. He stumbled backwards a few steps. He was going to die this time. “Y-You should be dead. What...what are you doing here?” he stuttered. 

“It’s okay,” Hyunggu said hurriedly, “he doesn’t have any magic anymore. Hyojong said whatever you stabbed him with pierced his core of magic. He’s harmless.”

Yanan’s eyes flicked to Kino for a moment before looking back at Yuto. “I-I don’t trust you. And I don’t want you here. A-Any of you,” he said shakily. 

“Yanan, I’m really sorry that you got hurt,” Hyunggu said, “you disappeared without a word after everything happened and I’ve been worried sick ever since.”

“Cut the shit,” Yanan snarled weakly, “I disappeared because I didn’t want to see you again. I don’t want your apology either. It doesn’t fix anything.”

“I’m sorry too,” Yuto said, “I-I don’t remember the things that I did, but I know that they were horrible and I’m really sorry that I made you suffer.” Just the thought of being near an incubus made him nervous. 

Yanan scoffed. “Of course you don’t remember. How convenient. How convenient that you don’t remember manipulating Kino for his entire life. How you don’t remember nearly killing me several times. How you don’t remember permanently disfiguring my friend. But I guess I’m just supposed to let it all go now because you apologized,” he said angrily. He leaned heavily against the wall behind him. 

Yuto took a shuddering breath. He didn’t remember doing any of that, and this incubus was clearly upset and starved. He didn’t even want to move in case he found himself attacked once again. Hyunggu took a step forward. “Yanan, I know you’re angry, but that’s why we’re here. Everyone deserves closure. Can we please come in and talk about this?”

Yanan glared at Kino. “Why all of the sudden do you want to talk to me? I tried to help you long beforehand and you ignored me and look where that got us. If you want to talk about this, you need to make it quick because none of you are welcome here,” he said angrily. 

Hyunggu reached out and grabbed Yanan’s hand, shuddering as he immediately felt his energy flow toward the incubus. “That’s why we need to apologize,” he said, “these woods have been in strife for far too long. It’s time that ended.”

Yanan pulled his hand out of Kino’s. “You have five minutes. And he,” he jabbed a finger at Yuto, “stays outside.”

“He has a lot more to apologize for than I do,” Hyunggu said, “c’mon, Yanan, please. I’ll even let you draw from me, no fighting.”

Yanan exhaled shakily. “Fine. Don’t make me regret agreeing,” he said quietly. He wished Hongseok was here in case things went south. He wasn’t strong enough to fight. 

The three of them stepped into the house and followed Yanan into the sitting room. “Yanan, I’m really sorry,” Hyunggu started, “you saved my life twice now and got hurt in the process and I will always be grateful to you for that.”

Yanan sat down heavily in the arm chair across from his couch. “I want to be clear that your apology doesn’t fix anything. Just promise me that nothing like this will ever happen again and if it does, it won’t involve me,” he said. 

“It won’t,” Hyunggu promised, “the black magic is gone for good now.” “I’m so sorry,” Yuto piped up, “I-I wish I could be specific, but I’m sorry for anything and everything I ever did to you or your friends.”

Yanan waved his hand. He dropped it to his lap quickly when he realized it was the scarred one. “It’s not fair that you don’t remember but there’s nothing I can do about that now. But I want to make it very clear. If I ever,  _ ever _ , see you around here again, I will not hesitate to kill you,” he said calmly. 

Yuto took a deep breath. “I’m mortal,” he said slowly, “what if I tried to...pay it back to you, so to speak?”

Yanan face scrunched up. “No,” he said bluntly, “I don’t want to be talking to you, let alone take you to bed. Your payback can be staying far away and never practicing black magic.”

“I couldn’t if I wanted to,” Yuto said desperately, “I don’t have any magic left, even my original magic. I-It’s gone. I can’t hurt you anymore.”

“Good,” Yanan said holding back a smirk, “I still don’t want to see you after today. Now is there anything else you wanted to talk about?” It finally dawned on him that Wooseok was there, probably as a buffer.

“Yanan, you very clearly need someone on a regular basis,” Hyunggu said, “I mean, this is your chance to actually settle the score.”

“You don’t understand. I don’t want to settle the score. I want my life back. I can find people on my own just fine. I’ve been doing it for centuries,” Yanan said. He was not about to reveal his disadvantage. 

“You’re white as a sheet and you’ve been seconds from collapse from the moment you opened the door,” Hyunggu said, “if you won’t have Yuto, then have me instead. Please, Yanan, it’s not safe for you to be this weak.”

Yanan narrowed his eyes. “I’m not weak,” he growled, “and you don’t need to be worried about me. If anything you should be afraid of me. I’m the most dangerous one in this room.”

“Maybe so, but I could never be afraid of someone who nearly sacrificed themself to save me,” Hyunggu said, “please, Yanan, let me repay you.”

Yanan huffed. “Fine,” he extended his hand and looked away, “give me your hand.”

Hyunggu moved closer and placed his hand in Yanan’s. Yuto watched nervously, ready to jump in and throw punches if Yanan did anything to hurt Hyunggu. 

Yanan felt Kino’s power slowly draining into him. He waited a few minutes, until his head cleared, and then let go. Simple contact never helped much, especially now, but he didn’t want to do anything more with Kino.

“That’s it?” Hyunggu asked nervously, “there’s no way that’s all you need.” He would happily let Yanan take this as far as he wanted.

“It’s enough for now,” Yanan said quietly, “I’ll find someone tomorrow morning.” He didn’t want Kino to know that his magic hadn’t been up to par the past few days.

“Yanan, I’m not kidding or just offering to settle the score. Take whatever you need,” Hyunggu said, “I’ll send Wooseok and Yuto back to Hyojong’s, it can just be us if that’s what you want.”

Yanan sat back in his chair. He desperately needed someone but it couldn’t be Kino. It just couldn’t. “I’m fine. You can all go back. E'Dawn is probably wondering where you all are,” he said. 

“He’s gone,” Hyunggu revealed, “he wouldn’t say where he was going, but he’ll be gone for the rest of the week at least.”

Yanan’s eyes widened. “He’s going to be pissed at you  _ and  _ me. You need to go back before he catches you. I do not need him showing up at my door,” he said. 

“I am sick and tired of people telling me what I want or what’s good for me, what’s safe for me,” Hyunggu said, frustrated, “I want to take risks for myself, and if I get to pay you back in the process, it’s even better.”

Yanan looked up at Kino. “You understand the consequences if you stay right? You may not be strong enough to make it until morning. Wouldn’t you much rather go home with your boyfriend anyway?” he asked.

“Boyfriend?” Hyunggu asked bewildered, “Wooseok is just my friend and Yuto is practically my dad. But that doesn’t matter. I can handle it.” “Kino, are you sure about this?” Wooseok interjected. “Yes,” Hyunggu said firmly, “bring Yuto back to E'Dawn’s. I’ll be fine.”

Yanan smirked. “If he doesn’t come back, don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he said. 

Wooseok looked conflicted, like he wanted to drag Hyunggu far away, but the faerie had made it clear what he wanted. “C’mon, Yuto,” he said, getting up, “I’ll fill you in on the walk back.”

Yanan exhaled shakily. Once Wooseok and Yuto left, he relaxed into the chair. “Why are you doing this? I know you’re smarter than this. I’m dangerous, Kino. Did you forget I’m a demon?” he asked. 

“Pretty shitty demon,” Hyunggu said, “like I said, I’m not scared of someone who was ready to sacrifice themself for me. Plus, I’m tired of it all. I can’t tap into my magic anymore, so I might as well give it to someone who can use it.”

Yanan growled quietly. He pushed himself up from the chair and walked towards the bedroom. “I’m only a shitty demon because you made me like this,” he grumbled, “go home, Kino, I’ll find someone who doesn’t insult me tomorrow.”

“I didn’t mean it as an insult,” Hyunggu said, “I’m sorry, I’m really terrible at this. I just meant that you aren’t exactly very...demonic. I mean, you wait for permission before taking people home. Most incubi don’t do that, Yanan. You’re really caring and kind and that kinda makes you a shitty demon, but that’s okay because it makes you a good person instead.”

Yanan kept walking. “I trick people into thinking they want to come home with me,” he clarified, “well I used to. And I’m  _ not  _ a person. And I’m not good. I don’t ever want to hear those words come out of your mouth again if you’re talking about me.”

Hyunggu rolled his eyes. Of course Yanan was going to be stubborn. “Well, now you don’t have to trick anyone because I’m here, at your disposal.”

Yanan hummed. “Well I’m exhausted so I’m going to bed. If you keep me awake, I’ll hand you over to Hongseok,” he threatened. He entered his bedroom and shed his shirt before climbing into bed. 

“You wouldn’t be exhausted if you weren’t so stubborn,” Hyunggu called after him. Regardless, he settled in on the couch. 

“And I wouldn’t be in this position if you weren’t so stubborn,” Yanan countered, “you better be gone before I get up.” He slipped under the covers and curled into a ball. He had gotten used to sleeping alone very quickly these past few days. 

Hyunggu huffed. He wasn’t planning on going anywhere. He was going to help Yanan, whether the incubus wanted it or not.

Yanan fell asleep easily. One would think with how tired he was he would sleep through the night but he didn’t. He kept waking up and tossing and turning with no concept of the time. 

Hyunggu couldn’t sleep. He hadn’t been able to since the confrontation with Yuto. He couldn’t stop thinking about what it felt like to have his body completely taken over like that. He’d give anything to experience that feeling again. 

Yanan eventually couldn’t take lying in bed any longer. He pushed himself up on shaky feet and went to take a walk. 

Hyunggu turned his head when he heard Yanan get up. “Are you okay?” he asked quietly. He could tell just from looking at him how shaky and pale he was. 

“I’m fine. I’m just going for a walk,” Yanan said, “go back to sleep.” He walked towards the front door so he could head outside. 

Hyunggu had a bad feeling about letting Yanan go alone. He grabbed the man’s hand as he passed, letting him take some energy before he went. 

Yanan regretfully pulled his hand away from Kino’s. He left his hut and headed for the woods. The small burst of extra energy didn’t last long and he soon found himself exhausted. Maybe he would just sit and rest for a few minutes. 

Hyunggu sat up and waited nervously for Yanan to return. He wasn’t sure how long to wait before going searching. 

Yanan leaned against a tree and let his eyes fall closed. He hated how out of control he felt. He used to be the strongest creature in these woods. And now he was barely anything. He would give anything, anything to have his magic back to how it was before Yuto ruined everything. 

When the sun started to come up, Hyunggu finally gave in to his worries and went looking for the incubus. “Yanan!” he called as he plodded through the woods. 

Yanan cracked his eyes open groggily when he heard his name. He couldn’t bring himself to respond, opting to just sit silently against the tree. He felt exhausted. He really needed to try to find someone. 

Hyunggu knew Yanan couldn’t have gone far, so he started circling, keeping the house in sight. Just when he started to get really worried, he found the incubus leaning against a tree. He rushed over and pressed his hands right to Yanan’s forehead. 

Yanan flinched when he felt hands against his forehead. “Go away,” he mumbled, weakly pushing at whoever was in front of him. 

Hyunggu frowned. Why wasn’t Yanan’s body taking his energy? With a huff, he took his hands instead, satisfied when the energy started to flow through. 

Yanan struggled to pull his hands away. “Kino, please, I don’t have time,” he desperately tried to stand but failed. 

“I’m not letting you die in the middle of the woods like an idiot,” Hyunggu said. Once he managed to get Yanan vertical and mostly awake, he moved his grip to his clothes and guided the incubus back to the house. 

“I won’t die, it’s not that easy,” Yanan said, “but don’t bring me back yet. I need to find someone.”

“Who could you possibly need to find in this state?” Hyunggu asked, exasperated.

“Anyone,” Yanan replied. Kino obviously didn’t care because within the next few seconds they were almost to his house.

“That’s the point of me being here,” Hyunggu said. He took Yanan into the bedroom and dumped him in bed before starting to strip off his own shirt. 

“I’ve never met a fae that was so stubborn and stupid,” Yanan grumbled. He laid back and looked away from Kino. He didn’t want the boy to know this wouldn’t work but if he kept being stubborn, he would have to tell him.

Hyunggu straddled Yanan’s thighs to keep him in bed then started to take the incubus’ shirt off as well. There was no way in hell he was letting Yanan die.

Yanan exhaled shakily. “Kino, please, you don’t understand. This isn’t going to work. Don’t waste your time,” he said quietly. 

“Why are you so against me helping you?” Hyunggu asked, “isn’t it worth it to at least try?”

Yanan sighed. “It’s not that,” he said, still not looking up, “ever since what happened with Yuto, I haven’t been able to properly draw from anyone. It’s not going to kill me but it’s certainly made for an uncomfortable past couple of days. So when I say this isn’t going to work and I don’t want you to do this I mean I don’t want another death on my hands because everything is going wrong.”

“You’ve been able to draw from me though,” Hyunggu said, “just from me touching you. It doesn’t hurt to just try, Yanan. If I feel like it’s going too far, I’ll stop you.”

Yanan sighed. He wished he was strong enough to throw the stubborn fae out but he wasn’t. “If you want to try this so bad, you can ride me,” he agreed reluctantly. 

Hyunggu grinned victoriously. He could get on board with that. He got up momentarily to take off his pants then returned to Yanan’s lap. 

Yanan looked up and was surprised Kino was already undressed. “You work fast,” he commented, “has it been a while? Is that why you’re doing this? Because you’re desperate?”

“I’m just trying to help out a friend,” Hyunggu said, still grinning. He shoved Yanan’s pants down his thighs, just enough to get at his cock. 

“We’re not friends,” Yanan said shakily. He’d never felt this out of control during sex before. Was this what it was like for everyone he brought home? 

“I’m offended, Yannie,” Hyunggu said, wrapping a hand around the incubus’ cock. “Of course we’re friends.” He leaned down and took the head into his mouth. 

Yanan gasped loudly. “Don’t call me that,” he growled weakly, “I’ve brought plenty of people home and never considered them friends.”

“The sex has nothing to do with us being friends,” Hyunggu said when he pulled off for air. He went back in without giving Yanan the chance to reply, pushing himself down as far as he could go. 

Yanan was shocked by how good Kino was. He had expected the boy to be inexperienced but he was wrong. He relaxed into the bed, already starting to feel some of his energy coming back.

Hyunggu’s body was humming, which hopefully meant it was working. He bobbed his head a few more times before pulling off. When he inevitably passed out, he’d rather it not be with a dick down his throat. 

Yanan glanced up with lidded eyes. “You’re so good, Kino,” he praised, “I didn’t know you had so much practice. What else do you have up those little sleeves of yours?”

“It’s Hyunggu,” he said, “not Kino. Do you bother to keep any sort of oil around?”

“Hyunggu,” Yanan let the name roll off his tongue, “you should know better than to give dangerous people your real name. And yes, I always have oil around. It should be in a drawer somewhere.” 

“I told you,” Hyunggu said, “I really don’t think you’re dangerous.” He got up and rummaged through Yanan’s drawers until he found what he was looking for. 

“You’re a fool,” Yanan whispered. He watched Hyunggu closely, as if he was studying him.

Hyunggu hummed. “Maybe,” he said, “but I’d rather be a fool than be scared all the time.” He climbed back onto the bed and straddled Yanan’s thighs again before reaching behind himself. 

Yanan fought the urge to rest his hands on Hyunggu’s thighs. It was nice being able to sit back and not have to do any of the work. He could almost get used to it. “You’re so stunning,” he said quietly. 

“Aren’t you sweet,” Hyunggu gritted out. It really was an unfortunate position to try and stretch himself in.

Yanan frowned. “Do you want some help? You can trust me. I won’t hurt you,” he said gently. 

“The position’s just awkward,” Hyunggu said, “but I don’t need much more. Just give me a minute.”

“Take your time, Hyunggu,” Yanan purred, “we have all the time in the world.” His resolve disappeared and his hand came up to massage Hyunggu’s thigh.

After what seemed like ages, Hyunggu finally decided he was ready. He shuffled forward and positioned himself over Yanan. Slowly, he sank down. 

Yanan tightened his grip on Hyunggu’s thigh. “You’re so tight,” he groaned. 

Hyunggu gritted his teeth until he was fully seated, then exhaled deeply. He needed a moment before he could move. 

“Just breathe, baby. It’ll feel good soon,” Yanan promised. He continued to rub gentle circles into Hyunggu’s thighs.

After a while, Hyunggu finally began to move. He started with small circles of his hips and somehow reached a point of full on bouncing on Yanan’s lap. That intoxicating feeling was starting to creep in again and he couldn’t wait for it to put him under again.

Yanan watched a tint of red spread across Hyunggu’s cheeks and down his neck. “You feel so good,” he moaned. To try and return the favor, he let go of the boy’s thigh and let his hand wrap around his cock instead. 

“Shit, Yannie,” Hyunggu moaned, head falling back to expose his throat. It all felt so good. 

Yanan hummed quietly. He started moving his hips in time with Hyunggu’s bounces, all while continuing to stroke his hand. 

Hyunggu was so close to his release, he could feel it. When Yanan started thrusting into him that did it. He came with a shout and immediately found himself launched into that intoxicated state he loved so much. 

One more strong thrust sent Yanan over the edge. He came with a quiet moan and barely caught Hyunggu before he fell forward. 

Hyunggu was floating, mind far gone. He collapsed forward onto Yanan, eyes glassy. 

Yanan sighed. This was how it usually went. It took him a moment before he registered how much better he felt. It worked. Maybe everything would go back to normal now. He combed his fingers through Hyunggu’s hair to get his attention. “You can’t sleep here. I’ll draw too much from you overnight,” he said quietly. 

Hyunggu just moaned softly, still not fully back to himself. At this point, he’d let Yanan drain him completely to keep feeling like this.

Yanan knew Hyunggu was not going to move on his own. Carefully, he rolled them both so they were lying on their sides and gently pulled out. 

As soon as Yanan pulled out of him, Hyunggu started to lose that floating feeling. He whined pitifully. It had felt so nice while it lasted. It wasn’t long before he was back down completely.

Yanan carefully stood up and covered Hyunggu. “Get some rest,” he whispered, “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“You’re not gonna stay?” Hyunggu mumbled tiredly, “it’ll help more.”

“I can’t. I’ll kill you if I stay,” Yanan said quietly, “I’ll be right on the couch when you wake up.”

Hyunggu sighed. He wished Yanan wouldn’t worry so much about that. “I’m not mortal, remember? And I’ve got full powers now,” he said, “you won’t kill me.” 

Yanan paused. “Only if you’re sure,” he said. He turned back to the bed and climbed in. 

“Positive,” Hyunggu said. Even if Yanan did kill him, it wasn’t like he had been contributing anything.

Yanan laid down with a quiet sigh. “Thank you,” he whispered after a moment. 

“Of course,” Hyunggu said quietly, “I don’t have much to lose and I’m always willing to help a friend who’s down.”

Yanan closed his eyes. “Why do you keep saying we're friends?” he asked quietly, “you shouldn’t want to be friends with someone like me.”

“You’ve risked your life for me at least twice and you let me stay conscious while we fucked,” Hyunggu said, “that seems like friends to me.”

Yanan huffed. “Get some rest, Hyunggu. I think you brain is still a little fuzzy,” he said. 

“My brain isn’t fuzzy enough,” Hyunggu muttered petulantly.

Yanan opened his eyes so he could see Hyunggu’s face. “If you make it through the night, we can go for round two tomorrow,” he bargained. 

“Oh, god, please,” Hyunggu said with a whine. He didn’t know why Yanan seemed so convinced he would die. He felt fine. 

“I’ve never met anyone who’s enjoyed sleeping with me,” Yanan said dubiously, “and we should be careful so E'Dawn doesn’t catch you.”

“He’s not my dad,” Hyunggu said crossly, “he doesn’t control me. If I want to spend my time with you, that’s my prerogative, not his.”

Yanan chuckled. “He may not be but I don’t want to be at the end of his wrath if he finds you here,” he said, “and you can’t stay here that much. That’s not really how incubi work. We don’t do one partner.” 

“And the fae don’t share their birth names or live together or absorb dark magic, yet here we are,” Hyunggu said, “there isn’t anyone that’s going to be mad at you for not following the status quo.”

Yanan scoffed. “You obviously don’t know Hongseok very well. And maybe I don’t want a permanent partner. It’s too dangerous,” he said. 

“I never said permanent,” Hyunggu said, “I’m not immortal like you are. And I’m sure eighty years to me is like a blink of an eye to you.”

“You aren’t staying ‘til you die. You aren’t even staying tomorrow night,” Yanan said, “but yes, eighty years doesn’t feel like that much anymore.” 

“So then what’s it matter if you have a regular partner for a tiny blip of your life?” Hyunggu asked, “it certainly makes things easier for you. I do you a service, you do me a service, I eventually die feeling happy, and you forget all about me. Win, win, win, win.”

“No,” Yanan said sharply, “I can find people just fine, I don’t need your service, you can probably get Yuto to do anything you want, and I’m  _ not _ going to get used to a partner only for you to disappear.”

“I can’t get what I want out of Yuto anymore,” Hyunggu said vaguely. Yuto didn’t have magic anymore and couldn’t take from Hyunggu. 

“Then go with Wooseok,” Yanan said with a wave of his hand. He rolled over and put his back to Hyunggu. 

Hyunggu made a face. “He’s like my brother, that’s just weird,” he said. 

Yanan groaned. “I’m done arguing with you. Go to sleep and I want you gone first thing in the morning tomorrow,” he said. 

Hyunggu pouted but wrapped himself around Yanan’s back all the same. The incubus had no idea how stubborn he was. 

Yanan exhaled shakily. This was why he had never tried to find a permanent partner, well part of the reason. He eventually drifted off to sleep, completely forgetting Hyunggu on his back. 

Hyunggu stayed tightly attached to Yanan’s back throughout the night. He wanted to take advantage of this as long as possible. 

When Yanan woke up the first thing he registered were arms around his waist. He growled quietly and removed them. The next thing he realized was that he was still naked so he stood up so he could get washed up and dressed. 

Hyunggu woke up when Yanan got out of bed. He sighed sadly. This was over now, he supposed, but he didn’t want it to end. 

Yanan took his time getting ready before walking back to the bedroom. He frowned when he saw Hyunggun still lying there. With a small shake of his head, he left the room. It’s not like there was anything valuable the boy could take while he wasn’t there. He was feeling infinitely better and was looking forward to spending the day wandering his woods. 

Hyunggu rolled onto his back. He wondered what Yanan would do if he just...didn’t leave. He was tempted to find out.

Yanan was enjoying the fresh air. He debated bringing someone home, but he decided against it. He simply wasn’t feeling up to dealing with someone new. He didn’t head home until it was well past dark. He was actually in a good mood for the first time in days and he hoped it lasted.

Hyunggu was, in fact, tempted enough. He fell back asleep and stayed in Yanan’s bed for most of the day. When he woke, he cleaned himself up and dressed before finding the kitchen and starting on dinner. 

Yanan’s good mood shattered into pieces when he opened his door and saw Hyunggu making himself at home in his kitchen. “What are you still doing here?” he asked angrily. 

“I’m making dinner!” Hyunggu said brightly, “I know you don’t necessarily need regular food, but I figured it would be nice.”

“No. No, no. Absolutely not. What the fuck is wrong with you? You don’t come into someone’s home you barely know, stay after they tell you to leave, and then start using their kitchen! I don’t care what your fae customs are but these aren’t mine. So for the last time, get out!” Yanan exploded. 

Hyunggu turned around and walked right up to Yanan until he was right in his face. “What are you gonna do about it if I don’t?” he asked. 

Yanan’s face twisted into a scowl. He grabbed onto Hyunggu’s arm and dragged him towards the door. “I’ll let Hongseok take out his anger on you,” he threatened.

“He wouldn’t,” Hyunggu knowingly, “both of you are too scared of E'Dawn. Just face it; you’re stuck with me.”

Yanan dropped Hyunggu’s arm. He felt his whole resolve deflate. “I don’t understand why you insist on making me miserable,” he said quietly. He turned around and walked towards the bedroom, shutting and locking the door behind him.

Hyunggu’s eye twitched but he returned to the kitchen with a bright smile on his face. He was going to make Yanan like him, whether he liked it or not. 

Yanan curled up in bed and didn’t move. All he had wanted was to get rid of the black magic. If he had known this was going to happen, he would have never gone after Hyunggu to help him the second time. 

When dinner was done and on the table, Hyunggu knocked on Yanan’s door. “Yannie?” he called, “food’s ready.”

“I’m not eating with you,” Yanan replied. Maybe this was all just a fever dream and he would wake up without Hyunggu and feeling sick again because his magic was still broken. 

Hyunggu felt his eye twitch again. “I worked so hard on it,” he said, “please?” 

“I don’t eat human food,” Yanan said flatly. He didn’t know why he was even bothering to respond. 

“That’s a lie,” Hyunggu said, “if that were true, you wouldn’t have any food here to begin with.”

“I bring  _ people  _ here, Hyunggu. They need to eat food,” he said, growing more and more frustrated.

Hyunggu rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right,” he said, “they come here, unconscious, you fuck them, unconscious, you let them go, unconscious.”

“That’s not how it goes,” Yanan growled, “what would you know anyway? You’ve lived a sheltered life until now; don’t pretend you know what goes on.”

“I just...know,” Hyunggu said teasingly, “c’mon, at least keep me company. You did promise me a round two.”

“Yes, but you’re being insufferable so I don’t want to. I’m sure you can find some other way to get off,” Yanan said. 

“Please, you’re an incubus,” Hyunggu said, snorting derisively, “you always want to get laid.”

“And you’re being so obnoxious that I never want to fuck you again. Does that put things into perspective for you?” Yanan snapped. 

“I’m adorable and a great fuck,” Hyunggu said, “I’m not an idiot, Yanan, you’re only an incubus. I’m like a gourmet dish for you.”

“Only an incubus,” Yanan snarled. He leapt out of bed and within seconds had crossed the room, thrown open the door, and pinned Hyunggu to the wall by his throat. “What the  _ fuck  _ has gotten into you? I want nothing more than to be left alone and to never see you again, yet you keep crawling back. Maybe I should just kill you and face the consequences E'Dawn has. It’d be less painful than dealing with you for another second!”

Hyunggu smirked. “You think I don’t know your little tricks? What makes you tick? I’ve been wanting this since the first time you took me up here and no one and nothing is going to stop me from getting it.” He pushed Yanan’s hand off and dragged him into the bedroom by his shirt collar. 

“What the  _ fuck  _ are you talking about? I’ve never met a fae so absolutely ruined in my life. Spending almost all your time with Yuto screwed with your brain. You should be afraid of me, not dragging me to bed! What the hell is  _ with _ you?” Yanan asked, slightly distressed. 

“Oh, you think all fae are just tiny, cute plant people that can’t want things for themselves?” Hyunggu asked with a scoff. “I’ve got some news for you, asshole. Every legion of magic has its bad eggs.”

Yanan pulled away from Hyunggu, eyes wide. “N-No, this isn’t right. Something’s wrong with you. You spent too much time around black magic, it fucked with your head,” he said shakily. He glanced down at his scarred hand. Was this his fault?

“Oh, sure, blame Yuto, as if the poor kid hasn’t been through enough,” Hyunggu said, “did it ever occur to you that, maybe, I’m just actually like this?”

“No, you’re absolutely not. If you were just like this, you would have never been afraid of me when we met. Something happened, something’s  _ wrong  _ with you, Hyunggu,” Yanan said quietly. He backed up until his back hit a wall. “This is my fault.”

Hyunggu rolled his eyes. “Please,” he said, “there’s nothing wrong with me. I’m just finally allowed to make choices for myself and I’ve decided I want that giant incubus dick, so  _ give it to me _ .”

“No,” Yanan said firmly, “I’m not fucking someone who’s insane. I’m not making you worse, I’m not.” He really needed E'Dawn to be here. He had no idea what had happened or how to fix it. 

“Even if I was being affected by the black magic, it’s all gone now,” Hyunggu said, “and red isn’t nearly strong enough to do any damage.”

“I hurt you, Hyunggu. I hurt you so bad. Please just trust me. You don’t want this. You want to relax and go back home to recover. Do not test me, I swear, I will use your name against you and force you to go home,” Yanan said firmly. 

Hyunggu’s face instantly became murderous. “Do  _ not  _ tell me what I want,” he said, fuming, “maybe what I  _ want  _ is for you to hurt me. Ever think of that, genius? I’m so  _ tired  _ of the sweet, small, soft boy that everyone thinks I am. I want you to fuck me up, Yanan, fuck me up so  _ good _ .”

Yanan was starting to get scared. And he feared absolutely nothing. “I’m not going to do that,” he said nervously, “I think you need to find someone else and you need to find them soon.” Why hadn’t E'Dawn come yet? He had to have sensed the disturbance. 

Hyunggu was getting frustrated with this charade. He shoved Yanan back onto the bed and was just starting to take their clothes off when he was suddenly tackled to the ground. He struggled to escape but a soft melody soon had him passing out cold. 

Yanan laid on the bed, panting, when Hyunggu was suddenly pulled off of him. He had to take a moment to register the siren singing softly to keep Hyunggu asleep. He slowly sat up and pushed himself back across the bed. “How...how…,” he shook his head, “how did you know to come here?”

“I’ve been feeling the dark magic ever since Yuto disappeared,” Jinho said, “it surged, so I followed it.”

“I-I don’t know what happened. He was fine yesterday and then today he just...snapped,” Yanan said quietly. 

“I sent Wooseok and Shinwon to go find E'Dawn,” Jinho said, “he’s got a lot of darkness in him right now.”

Yanan’s chest heaved. “You have to take him somewhere else. He’s not safe here. He can’t stay here,” he rambled. This was his fault. 

“It’s more dangerous to move him,” Jinho said apologetically, “my magic has boundaries and if we tried to move him, I’d have to sing the entire time. I don’t physically possess enough magic to do that. I’m sorry, Yanan, but he’s gotta stay.”

“Then I’ll go,” Yanan said. He stood up on shaky legs and smoothed out his shirt from where Hyunggu had grabbed him.

Jinho frowned. He wasn’t surprised that Yanan was leaving. The incubus always had been a flake. “Just head off the dragon and your blue mage friend,” he said, “I don’t want them showing up and wondering why we’re here and you’re not.”

“Yeo One’s a healer,” Yanan clarified, “and don’t keep him here long. I would like my house back soon.”

Jinho just rolled his eyes and waved Yanan off. How someone could have so little care or empathy was beyond him.

Yanan disappeared from the room and left the house. He took a shortcut to Hongseok’s and was there within seconds. He should have never let Hyunggu convince him to let them in. 

Once Yanan was gone, Jinho took it upon himself to move Hyunggu more comfortably onto the bed. He hoped the black magic hadn’t taken too deep of a hold yet. 

Yanan didn’t go to Hongseok’s often. It was much too secluded for him. Before his friend could even ask he explained how Hyunggu had brought Yuto to apologize and what had happened leading up to the siren showing up. 

Since Hyunggu was still passed out, Jinho figured he should at least tidy up. He made his way to the kitchen and started to clean.

Hyojong was not thrilled when Wooseok and Shinwon found him to tell him, Hyunggu had been consumed by dark magic. He rushed back to Yanan’s house as quickly as he could. Unsurprisingly, the incubus was nowhere to be found. 

“Oh, thank god you’re here,” Jinho said when E'Dawn finally arrived, “he’s knocked out in the bedroom. He was trying to force Yanan into having sex with him when I got here, if you can imagine that.”

Hyojong frowned. “And did Yanan have any explanation?” he asked.

“He said he was fine last night and just snapped today,” Jinho said, “then decided that it was too dangerous for him to be here and hightailed it.”

Hyojong sighed. “I’ll take care of him later. I want to look at Hyunggu first,” he said. He led the way into the bedroom.

Hyunggu was still laid out flat in the bed, seemingly asleep. His eyes fluttered but didn’t open. 

Hyojong walked across the room and sat on the edge of the bed next to the younger fae. He laid his hand across his forehead to find the skin burning. The black magic was flowing through the boy in a way he had never seen happen before. 

“Is he going to be okay?” Jinho asked nervously. He stayed in the doorway, away from E'Dawn’s magic.

Hyojong paused. “Yes,” he said slowly, “but I do not know to what extent he will come out of this. It may be a similar situation to what happened to Yuto.”

“If only Yanan hadn’t left, we would know exactly what he was acting like and how strong his magic was,” Jinho growled in frustration.

“I’ll go talk to him,” Hyojong said, “you stay here and make sure he doesn’t wake up. I’m not sure what he’s capable of.” He stood up from the bed and glanced at the siren.

“I’ll keep him under,” Jinho promised, “but please hurry; I only have so much magic and Shinwon can’t help me with this.”

“I’ll be back within a few hours,” Hyojong promised. He promptly headed through the woods to where Yanan was. “Incubus! Show yourself,” he called. 

Jinho sat down next to Kino, running a hand through his damp, sweaty bangs. “You’ll be alright, kiddo,” he promised softly.

Hyojong listened to Yanan’s retelling of what happened, making sure he explained everything. When he revealed the scar on his hand, Hyojong balked. “You need to come back,” he said. He grabbed the incubus’ wrist and dragged him back through the woods. 

“He’s our Kino,” Shinwon said reassuringly, “he can fight through anything.” “You didn’t see him,” Jinho said darkly, “I’m not so sure that he’s our Kino anymore.”

Hyojong dragged Yanan into his house and to the bedroom despite all of his protests. “The dark magic is connected to you so it is only going to respond to you. You’re going to have to take it back,” Hyojong said. Yanan stayed as far away from Hyunggu as possible. “Can’t you just suck it out of him like you’ve done before?” he asked desperately. Hyojong shook his head. “Not this time.”

“Should I wake him up?” Jinho asked nervously. He stood up and took a couple steps back.

“Yes, I want to see how he acts towards all of us,” Hyojong said, “but be prepared to put him under again quickly should he become too aggressive.”

Jinho nodded and very slowly released his hold on Kino. The faerie’s eyes fluttered open and he looked around, confused, before sitting bolt upright. “Why the fuck is everyone here? What’s going on?”

Hyojong was surprised by how normal Hyunggu seemed. It wasn’t at all like how Jinho described him. “I just wanted to come check in and see how you were feeling and what you’ve been up to while I was gone,” he said. 

“Why do you wanna know?” Hyunggu asked aggressively, “so you can tell me it’s wrong and lock me up again like some fuckin’ toy?”

There it was. “No, no, not at all. I just wanted to make sure you were happy and that Yanan wasn’t hurting you,” Hyojong said soothingly. The incubus’ mouth twisted into a frown. 

“Maybe I want him to,” Hyunggu said, “ever think of that? Or do you all just see me as some pretty vanilla pillow princess?” He was starting to get very annoyed.

Hyojong had never seen a fae so aggressive before unless they were completely consumed by dark magic. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to make you upset,” he said, “you can do whatever you please as long as  _ you  _ don’t hurt anyone.” Yanan’s eyes widened. 

Hyunggu scoffed. “I wasn’t gonna  _ hurt  _ him,” he said, “it was just foreplay, right Yannie?”

“No, it wasn’t,” Yanan said flatly, “you were ready to force yourself on me to get yourself off. And don’t use that nickname.”

Hyunggu scoffed again and rolled his eyes. “I’m just an itty bitty little fae,” he said mockingly, “surely, if you didn’t want it, you could fend me off.”

“I’ve been trying to get rid of you all day and you won’t just fucking leave!” Yanan said, starting to get frustrated. “He can’t. He’s connected to you by the black magic now,” Hyojong explained. 

“Oh, black magic, boo hoo!” Hyunggu exclaimed, “black magic has nothing to fucking do with it. What’s so bad about wanting to stay around someone I find attractive?”

Yanan sucked in a breath. “Black magic has everything to do with it. It’s why you’re finding me attractive instead of frightening,” he explained. “How do I get rid of the black magic?” he whispered to E'Dawn. “The same way you gave it to him,” the faerie replied. Yanan shivered. 

“You wanna know something?” Hyunggu said, annoyed. “I found you attractive from the first time we met. And even when I had no dark magic in me at all, I just wanted you to ruin me. But no, I’m just some stupid, abused fae; I can’t  _ possibly  _ know anything about myself and how I feel.”

“Can we have a few minutes alone please?” Yanan asked. He just wanted to take the black magic back from Hyunggu so the boy could be himself again. All he wanted was for everything to be normal.

Hyunggu watched as everyone filed out of the room, leaving him and Yanan alone. “Finally,” he drawled, “starting to see the light?”

“I’m starting to see my only option,” Yanan said quietly. Taking a deep breath, he crossed the room and kissed Hyunggu firmly. Maybe this would be all it took. 

Hyunggu melted happily into the kiss, glad that Yanan was finally seeing him like he wanted him to. The energy flowing between them felt electric. 

Yanan pushed his tongue into Hyunggu’s mouth, dominating the kiss. He could feel the black magic floating between them and he knew he was going to have to try something different. 

Hyunggu pulled away from the kiss with a coy giggle. “That’s more like it,” he said, tugging on Yanan’s shirt. 

Yanan helped Hyunggu with his shirt before taking the boy’s off too. “Lay down,” he said, “I want to repay the favor from last night.”

Hyunggu was more than happy to do that. Idly, he wondered what had changed the incubus’ mind so fast. It wasn’t like Yanan really cared if the people he had sex with were attracted to him or not. 

Yanan climbed into bed after Hyunggu. He pulled the boy’s hips off of the bed so he could pull his pants down to his thighs. Once his cock was free, Yanan wrapped a hand around it and stroked. He didn’t want to waste any time. 

“You’re so eager now,” Hyunggu teased, “what, you just needed someone to tell you you’re pretty?”

Yanan glanced up at Hyunggu. “I just want to fix everything,” he said quietly, “and if you want me to finish you off, you’re going to have to be a good boy and kept that little mouth of yours closed.”

The infuriated Hyunggu. Why was everyone convinced that he was some broken doll that needed to be fixed? Why couldn’t they just accept him for who he truly was? “Get off of me,” he said angrily. 

“If we stop, I’ll have E'Dawn take you far away from here and you’ll never get someone to fuck you ever again,” Yanan warned, “I don’t have time for your games. Either you want me or you don’t.”

“I thought you were different,” Hyunggu said, upset, “but you’re just as horrible as everyone else.”

Yanan smirked. “Welcome to what I’ve been trying to tell you,” he said. He let go of Hyunggu’s cock and pushed himself to sit up. “You’re no better than me. You’re no better than any of us. You’re as horrible as the rest of us and I can’t wait to watch you crumble like Yuto.”

“That’s not my problem!” Hyunggu said, “my problem is that everyone thinks I can’t possibly be horrible on my own and that there’s got to be some way to fix me, someone else to blame. You can be horrible, and Hongseok and Yuto, but I can’t and I  _ hate _ it. I’m only human.”

Yanan took a deep breath. How could one person be so insufferable? "You can be horrible," he finally agreed, "you just can't be horrible here. So if you want to be such a bad person like me, then you need to find somewhere else to go."

Hyunggu scrambled to sit up on his knees. “Why can’t we just be bad people together?” he asked.

Yanan sighed. This was not what he had wanted at all but if this was what it took to get Hyuggu back to normal he would have to take it. "Fine, we can be horrible together. Now lay down and let me finish what I started," he said.

Hyunggu wasn’t sure how much he believed Yanan, but he wanted to get off, so he laid back down, waiting for the incubus to make his move.

Yanan draped himself over Hyunggu. He tried to shove aside his worry and hesitation and let his instincts take over. This was going to help Hyunggu, it was. He started by kissing the boy's neck before slowly working down his body.

Hyunggu let out a shaky breath. Yanan may have been infuriating, but he certainly knew what he was doing. He knew this would definitely be worth it.

Yanan massaged Hyunggu’s thigh while he teased his tongue around the head of his cock. He wanted to hear the boy beg for it. At least it would make this somewhat worth it. 

Hyunggu groaned and found his hands burying into Yanan’s hair. He couldn’t even really believe that Yanan had offered to do this. He didn’t seem like the type to enjoy doing this.

Yanan smirked. “If you can’t keep your hands to yourself, I’m going to have to tie them back. Or is that something else you like?” he asked coyly. 

Hyunggu’s breath hitched. He would like that, very much so, but not right now. “Maybe next time,” he said teasingly.

Yanan frowned. “There is no next time. Now get your hands out of my hair or I won’t suck you off,” he growled. It was an empty threat but Hyuggu didn’t need to know that. 

Hyunggu just smirked and tightened his grip, tugging slightly. “Don’t act like you don’t like it,” he said, “I know you’re hard.”

“You wish just a little hair pulling was enough to get me hard,” Yanan grumbled. Despite that, he took the head of Hyunggu’s cock into his mouth and sucked lightly. Trying to tease the boy a little. 

Hyunggu’s breathing got shaky as Yanan sucked gently. He didn’t want to be desperate, but he really needed more, so he tugged gently on the incubus’ hair. 

Yanan smiled to himself. He took a little bit more of Hyunggu into his mouth and stopped to tease him some more. Deciding to be mean, one of his hands came up and gently cupped the younger man’s balls. 

Hyunggu had absolutely no control over the way that his thighs tensed and his hips bucked up. The touch to his balls was so unexpected.

Yanan hummed and took the opportunity to sink down to the base of Hyunggu’s cock. The boy was so responsive and he wished he could praise him. Since he couldn’t quite talk right now, he decided that massaging Hyunggu’s balls would serve as a reward. 

Hyunggu groaned. He didn’t know why he expected Yanan to be anything less than amazing at this. “God, just like that,” he muttered.

Yanan’s mouth and hand moved teasingly slow and teasingly gentle. After a few moments, he gradually began to pick up the pace. He didn’t want Hyunggu getting too comfortable. 

Hyunggu whined openly. “C’mon,” he complained, “you’re so slow.”

Yanan chuckled to himself. He swallowed around Hyunggu’s cock before starting to bob his head. The fun of this was starting to wear out. 

Hyunggu moaned lightly, his fingers tangling themselves further in Yanan’s hair. His hips bucked again. 

Yanan’s hand on Hyunggu’s thigh moved up to his hips to pin them down. He worked his mouth and hand in sync to try and overwhelm the boy. Judging by how hard he was, he was starting to get close. 

“Fuck,  _ Yannie _ ,” Hyunggu whined. He was really close, but he didn’t want to embarrass himself, so he hung on as best as he could. 

Yanan hummed happily. He hadn’t gotten reactions like this out of someone and it was giving him a power rush. And Hyunggu’s hands in his hair were definitely helping. 

Hyunggu used his grip on Yanan’s hair to pull him up and off. “Can I cum on your face?” he asked breathlessly.

Yanan gasped for air when Hyunggu pulled him off. He stared at the younger man for a moment, trying to catch his breath. “If you can get me off,” he bargained. 

“Oh, yeah, absolutely,” Hyunggu said, “now or after?”

Yanan effortlessly flipped them around so that he was lying on his back and Hyunggu was above him. “Now, but you better work fast. I tend to get a little...handsy,” he teased. 

Hyunggu smirked and leaned down to kiss and suck at Yanan’s neck. He grinded against the incubus, shoving a hand into his pants. 

Yanan tipped his head back and moaned quietly. This was more like it. “If you want a mark to last until the morning, you’re going to have to make it really dark. I heal fast,” he said. 

Hyunggu bit into Yanan’s neck harshly, finally managing to wrap a hand around his cock. He wanted to at least pretend that Yanan was his. 

Yanan groaned and pushed his hips into Hyunggu’s hand. He always challenged people to give him a mark that would last until morning and almost none had succeeded, but he had a funny feeling Hyunggu would. 

Hyunggu kept his teeth in Yanan’s neck as he stroked him off, quick and rough. When he finally thought he had made the mark dark enough, he moved down and shimmied Yanan’s pants to his thighs before taking the incubus in his mouth. 

Yanan’s hands flew to Hyunggu’s hair. “Be careful. I’m close,” he warned. He didn’t know if the fae would want to swallow. 

Hyunggu quickly bobbed his head up and down, trying to get Yanan as sloppy as possible. He got the sense that the incubus preferred that.

Yanan sucked in a breath. He tried to push Hyunggu off before he reached the edge but the fae wasn’t budging. His hand tightened in Hyunggu’s hair and he pulled roughly. “You have to get off. I’m-” his breath hitched in his throat. 

Hyunggu looked up at Yanan, eyebrow cocked, before pushing himself down as far as he could go and swallowing. There was no way he was passing up this chance. 

Yanan came with a loud moan when Hyunggu swallowed around him. One of his hands fell to the bed but the other stayed in the younger man’s hair. “You are full of surprises,” he breathed out.

Hyunggu pulled back so he could swallow properly without choking. He licked Yanan’s cock a few more times to clean him up before sitting back on his heels. “Oh, there’s a  _ lot  _ more where that came from,” he said. 

Yanan exhaled shakily but held his tongue. He wasn’t going to have the opportunity to find that out. “Just get up here,” he said with a roll of his eyes. His hand grabbed Hyunggu’s and he tugged the boy up the bed. 

Hyunggu crawled up and straddled Yanan’s chest. He spit on his hand to stroke himself back to full hardness. 

Yanan grabbed onto Hyunggu’s thighs with both hands and gently massaged his toned legs. “I can finally praise you now for how good of a boy you were earlier. You haven’t gotten sucked off like that in a long time, hm?” he asked, staring up at Hyunggu with lidded eyes. 

“Sucked off? A couple months. Like that? Never,” Hyunggu said, faint blush painting his cheeks. He didn’t want to admit how much the praise turned him on. 

Yanan smiled. “You responded so well. But you need to learn to keep your hands to yourself,” as he said it, he reached up to replace Hyunggu’s hand on his cock, “it can get people riled up too fast.”

“Good,” Hyunggu said with a smirk, “now are you gonna finish your job or not?”

Yanan rolled his eyes. He wasn’t used to letting someone else take this much control. Regardless, he increased his pace, continuing to stroke his hand up and down. “You’re so pretty,” he breathed, “especially with your pink cheeks.”

“Which ones?” Hyunggu asked cheekily. His hips rocked into Yanan’s hand. He was getting close. 

Yanan’s hand on Hyunggu’s thigh, slid up to cup his ass. He squeezed gently, while still making sure his other hand didn’t lose it’s rhythm. “Come on, baby boy. You’ve made such a bold request, I want to see you follow it through,” he said in a silky voice. 

Hyunggu whimpered. That nickname did things to him. He moved a little further up, pressing into Yanan’s hand, before cumming across his face with a drawn out whine. 

Yanan moaned quietly when the warm cum hit his face. Both of his hands slid to Hyunggu’s abdomen to help keep him upright. He licked the cum off from around his lips and swallowed it while keeping his eyes locked on Hyunggu’s. “You taste so good, baby,” he purred. 

Hyunggu could’ve choked. Now that it was over and he was sated, he felt a little embarrassed by how insistent he had been. 

Yanan smiled when he saw Hyunggu’s expression. “Be a good boy and go get a washcloth from the bathroom for me,” he requested. 

Hyunggu was a little too eager to climb off Yanan, fix his pants, and hurry off to the bathroom. He was sure his face was bright red. He needed a second to pull himself together before bringing Yanan his washcloth. 

Yanan sat up a little and watched Hyunggu scurry into the bathroom. This certainly wasn’t how he was acting a little while ago. It had to have worked. He heaved a sigh of relief; it had worked. 

Hyunggu brought Yanan the washcloth and hesitantly sat on the bed next to him. He didn’t regret what they had done, nor was he any less frustrated about how everyone seemed to think of him, but he was a bit embarrassed that Yanan knew some of his kinks now. 

Yanan cleaned off his face and tossed the washcloth to the side. “How do you feel?” he asked as he reached down to fix his pants. 

“I’m still mad at everyone,” Hyunggu said, “but I feel…less aggressive? If that makes sense. I’m upset and annoyed, but I’m not about to rip any heads off.”

Yanan furrowed his eyebrows. That wasn’t quite what he was hoping for but it was better than nothing. “Do you remember everything?” he asked next. 

Hyunggu frowned. “Everything after I woke up,” he said, “and I remember us fucking and me cooking, but everything between there and this is kinda blurry.”

Yanan nodded. “Get dressed. E'Dawn and your siren friend are waiting for you. They’re going to take you somewhere safe,” he said. 

“You’re still on about that? I’m plenty safe here,” Hyunggu said, frustrated. He knew that Yanan was an incubus, but this couldn’t all be entirely meaningless to him. Could it?

“You are  _ not  _ safe here,” Yanan said flatly, “I’m the reason you went on your little rampage and I do not want to be responsible for another one. So if you would like to walk out of here on your own, I suggest you get a move on.”

“What if it happens again when you’re not around?” Hyunggu argued, “the black magic isn’t gone. I can still feel it there.”

Yanan deflated. So it hadn’t worked. “E'Dawn will be able to help. I’m not your babysitter, Hyunggu. I’m a monster who was designed to live alone,” he said. 

“He’s not my babysitter either,” Hyunggu said crossly, “I don’t  _ need  _ a babysitter, because I’m an adult capable of making my own decisions. We’re not bad together, Yannie.”

“Don’t  _ call  _ me that,” Yanan growled, “what’s wrong with you? You’ve got a hero complex and you want to save me? Or maybe fucking you accidentally made us connected or some shit.”

Hyunggu fell quiet for a minute. “I don’t think it was the fucking,” he said softly, “I think...when you stabbed Yuto, you connected yourself to his power. And I was already connected to his power. It didn’t dissipate. It split between the two of us. There’s some flow of magic between us now and there’s nothing either of us can do to stop it flowing from you to me, but I can’t tap into mine. I can’t release it. It just builds and builds until I freak out like I did last night. Please, Yanan, I don’t know who else to go to. M-My magic won’t  _ have  _ anyone else.”

Yanan glanced down at his scarred hand and cursed himself for ever getting involved. “I don’t know how to help you. I don’t know how to stop you if you have another outburst. Jinho was the one who was able to calm you down,” he paused, “and what about Yuto? You’re just going to leave him on his own?”

“Jinho didn’t calm me down,” Hyunggu said, “he just knocked me out. The anger and the rage didn’t go away until we did this.” He gestured between them. “Yuto...he’s not my concern anymore. He may be the closest thing to a father figure that I have, but he hurt me a lot and even though he’s powerless now, I’m still scared just being in the same room with him. If E'Dawn wants him to stay with him, fine, or if he wants to send him away, also fine. But I...I can’t be the one responsible for him. I just can’t.”

Yanan sighed. “I need some time to think this through,” he said quietly. 

Hyunggu nodded. He could understand that. He hoped Yanan wouldn’t take too long. If he went on a rampage again and hurt some innocent bystander, he’d never forgive himself. 

Yanan stood up and grabbed his shirt. He put it on before slipping out of the room. “You can talk to him but I’m going for a walk. I’ll be back at some point,” he said, leaving no room for argument. He immediately went to his favorite tree and wasted no time settling among the branches. He just wanted everything to feel normal for a little while. 

Hyunggu carefully tugged his shirt back and curled into himself as Jinho and Hyojong both peeked into the bedroom. He was worn out and emotionally exhausted and absolutely did not want to have this conversation. 

Hyojong didn’t say anything as he approached the bed. He could feel the black magic still flowing through the boy’s veins, but it was subdued. He grabbed his wrist and tried to extract it again but it was unresponsive. It had taken on characteristics much more similar to Yanan’s magic and Hyojong couldn’t control that.

Hyunggu explained to Hyojong what he had told Yanan about the dark magic. “We’re connected now,” he said heavily, “but he doesn’t want anything more to do with me. I’m scared of what will happen if I can’t be around him.” 

Hyojong combed his fingers through Hyunggu’s sweaty bangs. “He’s not affected by the black magic in the same way you are. But you have to understand this gives him a level of control over you. And you also have to remember that he has been alive much longer than you and I and caring for someone else has not been part of any of those years,” he said. 

“He’s gone and I can just feel it building,” Hyunggu said, “and he’s the only one that can tap into it and get rid of it. What do I do if he kicks me out?”

“You stay close regardless. If he truly wants you gone, you stay within a small radius so the magic can still flow between you. It won’t be perfect and it may not be enough but it’ll be something,” Hyojong said. 

“It’s jammed,” Hyunggu mumbled, “his flows to me easily, but I can’t flow back to him. He has to tap into it in order to take it, and if he refuses to do that…” He was terrified of what would happen. 

“Unfortunately, I can’t force him to do anything. He’s going to have to make his own decisions and if he forces you to suffer on your own, then he’ll eventually pay the consequences. You have to remember that he is going to choose what benefits him rather than looking at the big picture,” Hyojong said gently. 

Hyunggu wanted to believe that that wasn’t true. Yanan was more than just an incubus and he had the ability to make decisions that went against the nature of his magic. “Well,” he said tiredly, “I guess I need to build a house then.”

“Find a spot that’s suitable for you and I’ll help. In the meantime, I'll try to find a way to control the magic or get rid of it so you don’t have to depend on Yanan,” Hyojong said gently.

“I don’t mind being dependent if he’ll let me dependent, but I’m worried about what will happen if he just abandons me,” Hyunggu said quietly. “Well, we’ll figure that out when it comes to it,” Jinho said, “c’mon, let’s go find a spot for you to stay.”

Hyojong let Jinho explore the surrounding woods with Hyunggu while he inspected the house. He was trying to understand why the black magic was behaving the way it was. Nothing like this had ever happened before. A little while later, he heard footsteps and turned around to find Yanan returning from the woods. “They’re finally gone?” he asked.

Hyunggu and Jinho eventually found a spot. It was just far enough from Yanan’s house that the incubus likely wouldn’t notice it, but close enough for Hyunggu to get help if he needed it. “I’m gonna grab Shinwon to build for us,” Jinho said, leaving Hyunggu standing in the woods for a moment. 

“They’re finding somewhere safe for Hyunggu to stay,” Hyojong replied. Yanan’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t want him living with me,” he snarled. Hyojong put a hand up. “He won’t be. You won’t even know he’s here until something happens,” he explained. “Oh, so I get to see him when he gets aggressively horny and comes after me? I don’t think so,” Yanan snapped. A throbbing pain started radiating through his body and he shrank back from Hyojong. He forgot how strong the force of the green magic the faerie had could be. “You’re going to help him because the fate of these woods depends on it,” Hyojong said, not letting Yanan argue anymore. 

Jinho returned with Shinwon and together, the three of them built and furnished a little house for Hyunggu. When it was finished, Jinho and Shinwon took their leave to find Hyojong and let Hyunggu get settled. 

“Fine, fine, I’ll help!” Yanan finally agreed. He heaved a sigh of relief when the pain disappeared. When he stood up straight again, he saw the siren and another friend of Hyunggu’s approaching them. 

“He’s settling in,” Jinho said as they finally reached Hyojong. “You won’t even know he’s here,” he added to Yanan.

“I’m not changing how I live for him,” Yanan clarified, “if he really needs help, he can come to me but I’m not giving up my...livelihood. And if he gets out of control and I can’t stop him, what am I supposed to do? Let him go? Kill him? Let him kill me?”

Hyunggu sighed as he sat on his new bed. He would like living here, he told himself. Of course he would. 

“He won’t kill you and you won’t have to kill him,” Hyojong said calmly, “as long as you keep on top of helping him when he needs it.” Yanan sighed. There was absolutely no way out of this. He supposed it was what he got for causing this. “I’ll help him and I won’t neglect him,” he finally promised, “I’ll do everything within my power to make sure he doesn’t get that bad again.” Hyojong nodded. “That’s all we ask.”

“And if he does,” Jinho added, “come find one of us. We can at least subdue him again for you.”

Yanan nodded. “I will. Now if you’ll excuse me. I have a house to put back together,” he said. He walked away from the pair, half expecting Hyojong to do something to him but no pain came. He was surprised to find his kitchen cleaned so he moved into the bedroom.

Hyunggu sat unmoving on the bed until he heard footsteps outside. Peeking out, he saw that Jinho, Shinwon, and Hyojong were outside, waiting for him. He let them in. 

Hyojong looked around the small hut. It was a good size for Hyunggu but not quite green enough. With a wave of his hand, ivy grew along some of the walls, but stayed out of the way, and some wildflowers began to bloom in little pots around the room. “Are you comfortable here?” he asked.

“As comfortable as I can be,” Hyunggu said with a heavy sigh. There wasn’t much he could do to make things better. He would just have to get used to it. 

“And how are you feeling right now? Honestly?” Hyojong asked, “I don’t want to leave you alone too soon.” 

“I’m fine, hyung, really,” Hyunggu assured him, “I’m not gonna fly off the handle again any time soon.”

Hyojong fashioned a rune stone out of the natural energy that surrounded the house. “If he doesn’t help you or if the magic starts to become too much, use this to summon me,” he said, handing the smooth stone to Hyunggu.

Hyunggu took the stone and tucked it into his pocket. “Will you keep Yuto safe for me?” he asked. Somehow, he had ended up being a victim in all of this too, and Hyunggu didn’t want to see him hurt. 

Hyojong nodded. “I will. And if you ever want to come see him you’re more than welcome. You’re not trapped here; it’s just the safest option for you right now,” he said. 

Hyunggu nodded. He wasn’t going to travel too far until he knew how long he had between visits to Yanan. He didn’t really want to see Yuto anyway; he just didn’t think he deserved to die either. 

“I’m never that far away,” Hyojong said, “stay safe, Hyunggu. And you always have a place with me.” He left Hyunggu after that, giving him some time with his friends.

“You’re  _ positive  _ you’re fine here alone?” Jinho asked. Hyunggu nodded. He didn’t want to risk hurting any of his friends. 

Yanan made sure his house was neat and then collapsed into bed. As much as he hoped everything would go back to normal, he knew it wouldn’t. He would just spend the next who knew how many years, waiting for Hyunggu to come find him when the black magic started consuming him.

When Jinho and Shinwon finally left, Hyunggu curled up in bed. It wasn’t nighttime, wasn’t even close, but he didn’t have the energy to do anything else. 

Yanan decided his best bet would be to bring someone home. He didn’t want to get too out of practice. Instead of hiding out in his tree though, this time he decided to walk the forest floor. It took a little longer than usual for Yanan to find someone, but he wasn’t particularly worried about it. What did worry him was the fact that when he woke up, he didn’t feel as energized as he usually did. Yanan brought a few more different people home but the same problem kept happening no matter what he did. Was Hyunggu really the only one that he could draw energy from?

Hyunggu had become a recluse in his little house. Not only was he scared to death of possibly hurting someone, but he was also incredibly lonely. He could hear the things Yanan was getting up to in the night and could feel the black magic growing, so he stayed in bed, only getting up to grab food then laying back down again. Maybe he could tough it out.

Yanan eventually became too desperate to wait any longer. He slowly made his way through the woods, going where the black magic was pulling him. Eventually, he came upon a little hut and he knew it had to be Hyunggu’s. He walked over to the door and knocked weakly. He leaned heavily against the doorframe, trying to figure out what he would do if this didn’t work.

Hyunggu’s head shot up when he heard a knock on the door. He thought he was imagining things until he heard it again. With a groan, he got out of bed and made his way to the front door. “Yanan?” he asked when he saw who was outside, “what are you doing here?”

“I need your help,” Yanan said desperately, almost falling into the house, “nothing I’m doing is working and I need energy. You’re the only person I’ve been able to draw from since everything happened. Please, I’ll do anything you ask.”

“Oh, so  _ now  _ you want me?” Hyunggu asked crossly, but he let Yanan in anyway. The build up was starting to get too much for him, hence when he was so annoyed.

Yanan walked over to the kitchen table on shaky legs and collapsed into a chair. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to do. Nothing else I’ve tried has worked. I’m broken now and I really don’t know how to fix it,” he said quietly.

“Do you believe me now about the connection?” Hyunggu said, “we have to stick together or we’re both going to suffer.”

Yanan nodded. “I’m sorry for doubting you,” he said in a small voice. “Will you...will you help me?”

“Fine, but not here,” Hyunggu said, “I don’t have much space and those legs are not fitting on my bed.”

“That’s fine,” Yanan agreed easily. He pushed himself up slowly and steadied himself on the chair. “You can do anything you want to me as long as you promise to get me off.”

Hyunggu grabbed Yanan’s hand. “Does this help?” he asked. He would sleep with Yanan if he needed to, but he was too annoyed to just jump into bed.

“A little,” Yanan admitted. His other arm helped keep himself propped up so he didn’t lean too much on Hyunggu. He could feel the energy slowly flowing between them, more from the lack of balance of the black magic than anything. 

Hyunggu sighed. “C’mon, then, let’s go,” he said. He all but dragged Yanan out of the hut and down to the incubus’ home.

Yanan stumbled behind Hyunggu and into his house. He collapsed onto the couch and pulled the fae down with him. “Just lying close might help enough too,” he said quietly.

Hyunggu huffed but adjusted himself to lay more comfortably. “This better work,” he muttered.

Yanan sighed quietly. He tried to get as much skin to skin contact between them and just let the energy slowly flow between them. Hopefully this worked.

Hyunggu found himself slowly beginning to drift off. He felt warm laying between Yanan and the back of the couch.

This wasn’t quite what Yanan had in mind but it was good enough. He hesitantly wrapped an arm around Hyunggu so he didn’t fall off the couch. 

Hyunggu could tell this wasn’t going to be enough contact, but that was a problem for after he took a nap. He hadn’t been able to sleep very well since he’d been living alone.

Yanan drifted off to sleep, not having the energy to do much else. He wondered if Hyunggu would still be laying with him when he woke up.

Hyunggu was surprised that he was able to sleep at all, with how frustrated he was. Yanan must have been really strung out, because he slept well into the late evening. When the incubus finally did wake, Hyunggu was just about at capacity for how much he could manage. His head was pounding from the overabundance of dark magic in his system.

Yanan blinked his eyes open with a quiet groan. He felt better but the nap definitely wasn’t enough. He moved his arm and sat up quickly when he saw how pale Hyunggu was. That wasn’t a good sign. 

“Yannie,” Hyunggu whined, “I need you. Do something, please.”

Yanan knelt back down next to the couch. “What do you want me to do?” he asked nervously. He wanted to be positive Hyunggu wanted what he was asking for since he seemed hesitant earlier.

“Anything,  _ god _ ,” Hyunggu whined. He just needed to release all the tension.

Yanan smirked. “Roll onto your stomach, baby. I have a little surprise for you,” he said gently. He reached down to help Hyunggu out of his shirt. 

Hyunggu slipped out of his shirt and groaned as he shifted onto his stomach. He wasn’t quite sure where Yanan was going with this, but he was excited to find out. “If you spank me, I’ll kick you,” he warned.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Yanan promised, “this is going to feel good.” He grabbed Hyunggu’s hips and gently lifted them so he could take off the younger man’s pants and slide a pillow underneath. 

Hyunggu shifted his hips so that Yanan could pull his pants off. He grabbed the other pillow and wrapped his arms around it so he could see what was happening.

Yanan gently lowered Hyunggu’s hips back onto the couch before grabbing his ass with both hands. He started to massage his hands in slow circles. “You’ve been so good to me. I want to repay you for helping me even though you didn’t have to,” he said quietly.

Hyunggu had to work really hard to not whimper or whine when Yanan suddenly grabbed his asscheeks. “Just get on with it,” he finally gritted out.

“Don’t get so impatient with me,” Yanan chastised. Nevertheless, he pushed Hyunggu’s asscheeks apart and leaned down. He slowly teased his tongue around the younger man’s rim, wanting to hear him beg for it. 

“Oh, holy  _ fuck _ ,” Hyunggu blurted out. He had never done  _ this  _ before. His face flushed as he could feel his muscles tense and relax over and over.

Yanan chuckled. “Relax, baby. I’m gonna take good care of you,” he whispered. He teased his tongue around one more time before carefully pushing past the muscle. 

Hyunggu moaned loudly. That felt  _ incredible _ . If he had known Yanan was going to do this, he would’ve taken the time to clean himself up a little better. “Shit, don’t stop,” he whined out. 

Yanan smirked to himself. He hadn’t expected Hyunggu to be so needy. Not holding back, he continued thrusting his tongue, only pulling it away to catch his breath. 

“Damn, Yannie,” Hyunggu panted when the incubus finally pulled away, “where the hell did that come from?”

“I haven’t done this in a long time,” Yanan breathed, “I’m never with anyone long enough to find out if they deserve this.”

Hyunggu rolled his eyes. “Quit pandering,” he muttered. He knew Yanan was just trying to make up for not trusting him. 

“Yes, Your Highness,” Yanan quipped. He obediently leaned down again and skipped right over the teasing. He’d much rather hear Hyunggu beg and whine than complain.

Hyunggu moaned again when Yanan pressed back in. It felt incredible. He certainly wasn’t a prude, but he had never done anything like this before and he quite enjoyed it.

Yanan resumed massaging his hands and thrusting his tongue. He wanted to see how hard he could make the younger man just from this. Judging by the noises Hyunggu was making, he was doing a pretty good job.

Hyunggu whined in the back of his throat. He was embarrassingly close. “Yannie,” he moaned, “Yannie,  _ please _ .” 

Yanan pulled his tongue out slowly. “What’s wrong, baby? You want something else? All you have to do is ask nicely,” he said quietly.

Hyunggu huffed in frustration. “I wanna cum,” he whined.

Yanan chuckled. “Roll over over for me, baby,” he said soothingly.

Hyunggu painstakingly rolled onto his back, leaving one pillow under his head and the other under his hips. He had no idea what Yanan was planning now. 

“That’s better,” he said with a hum, “I want to see your pretty face when you cum.” He draped himself over Hyunggu. “Now where were we?” he asked as he kissed the younger and wrapped a hand around his cock.

Hyunggu groaned, kissing Yanan back happily. This really was going to be the death of him. 

Yanan kissed Hyunggu for a few moments before pulling away to kiss down his jaw and to his neck. He nipped around trying to find the sensitive part of Hyunggu’s neck. When the fae shivered, he smirked. “Cum for me, baby boy,” he whispered before biting into the soft skin. 

The combination of the nickname and Yanan’s teeth in his neck and his hand on his cock had Hyunggu cumming with a soft moan. His back arched a little, tipping his head back. “Fuck,” he whimpered. 

Yanan pulled away from Hyunggu’s neck to kiss back up to his mouth. “Do you feel better?” he asked quietly.

“Yeah,” Hyunggu mumbled, feeling like he could breathe for the first time in days. “You?”

“Good,” Yanan said, dodging the question, “let me clean you up and then you need some rest.” Without wasting another moment, he slipped off of the couch and disappeared into the bathroom.

Hyunggu sighed when Yanan disappeared. He painstakingly sat up and started looking for his clothes. 

Yanan grabbed Kino’s clothes off the floor and put them on the arm of the couch when he came back. “Let me clean you up first and then you can get dressed,” he said. He cleaned up the fae’s stomach and legs before handing him his clothes. “Did you...did you want to stay here tonight?” he asked hesitantly.

Hyunggu got dressed and wrapped his arms around himself. “You don’t have to offer just because we have an arrangement now,” he said. 

“I want you to stay,” Yanan said in a small voice. He didn’t want to admit that he was being selfish but he was exhausted and spending the night next to Hyunggu was just what he needed. 

Hyunggu didn’t have the energy to argue. He followed Yanan into the bedroom and curled up under the blanket. 

Yanan followed Hyunggu into the bedroom. He slipped under the covers and wrapped around the smaller man’s back, trying to subtly get as much skin to skin contact as possible.

Hyunggu closed his eyes. He was drained now, which was a good thing. Hopefully, Yanan fell asleep quickly so he could slip out. He didn’t need any charades of the incubus pretending he liked him. It was just sex, nothing more. Hyunggu didn’t need to get his hopes up. 

Yanan fell asleep a few minutes later, not before mumbling a quiet “good night.” He hoped this would be enough to restore his energy but he didn’t know what to expect anymore.

Once Hyunggu was certain that Yanan wouldn’t wake up, he slipped out of the bed and out of the house. He trudged through the woods back up to his own tiny shack and went to bed, cold and alone.

Yanan woke up feeling even more exhausted than when he went to bed. How could this have happened? He forced his eyes opened and that was when he realized Hyunggu was no longer laying next to him. Oh. That would do it. The boy must have left just after he fell asleep. With a tired groan, he let his eyes close again.

Hyunggu was sad. Miserable and sad. He wished he had the option of cutting things off with Yanan, to save his heart the ache, but it wasn’t possible. 

Yanan dozed on and off for who knew how many hours. Eventually, he started going crazy so he channeled the last of the energy he had to pull himself out of bed and slowly walk into the living room. He barely made it to the couch before collapsing onto it. Why couldn’t he just get energy from any stranger that passed by again? With a soft sigh, he just resigned himself to laying here until the black magic overwhelmed Hyunggu again and the fae came crawling back over. 

Hyunggu should have known that it wouldn’t be enough. The dark magic started building up again almost immediately. Apparently, they actually needed to fuck in order for there to be any positive effects. Still, he refused to go to Yanan until he absolutely had to. It wasn’t until he ended up destroying half of the items in his kitchen over one pesky stain on a bowl that he figured he should pay the incubus a visit again. 

Yanan hadn’t moved from the couch since he laid down on it. He was half asleep when the sound of footsteps hit his ears. It took him a moment to realize that it wasn’t Hongseok or Changgu. Pushing himself to sit up, he tried to seem as normal as possible when Hyunggu opened the door. 

“I need help,” Hyunggu said, annoyed just at the fact of it. He pushed past Yanan, welcoming himself into the incubus’ home. He grabbed the older man as he passed and all but dragged him to the bedroom. 

Yanan just let Hyunggu drag him into the bedroom. He climbed into bed and waited for the younger man to join him. “What are you in the mood for?” he asked hesitantly. He didn’t want to do something wrong and waste too much energy.

“I don’t care as long as it ends in actual sex,” Hyunggu said, “just getting off isn’t enough.”

Yanan nodded. “Well you have a few two many pieces of clothing on for this to end in sex so,” he said as he slipped his own shirt off. 

Hyunggu pulled his shirt off and stood up to strip off the rest of his clothes. He didn’t want to waste any time here. 

Yanan kicked off his own pants and dragged Hyunggu down onto the bed. Wanting to get straight to it, he straddled the younger man’s thighs and bit down into the soft skin of his neck. His energy was so low that even just this was helping and he could already feel the black magic starting to flow between them.

“None of that, c’mon,” Hyunggu complained. He pushed Yanan off of him so he could move onto his knees and forearms, waiting for the incubus to do his job. 

Yanan sighed. He grabbed the small pot of oil from the nightstand and slicked up his fingers. He unceremoniously pushed the first finger in and waited a moment before moving it. 

Hyunggu adjusted himself on his elbows to give Yanan the best possible access he could. He didn’t care about being comfortable; he cared about getting fucked. 

Yanan didn’t waste anymore time than necessary stretching Hyunggu. Wanting to at least have a little fun before he pulled his fingers out, he crooked them in hopes of finding that one special spot. 

An embarrassing, unidentifiable sound left Hyunggu’s throat when Yanan’s fingers suddenly pressed into his prostate. “Just get on with it, quit stalling,” he grumbled, face bright red.

“We can’t do anything if I’m not hard,” Yanan countered. He pulled his fingers out and used the excess oil to slick himself up just enough to stroke himself to full hardness. 

“What, just the mere sight of my ass isn’t enough for you?” Hyunggu grumbled. It was sort of a joke, as the tension in him started to lighten. 

“No, rushing it doesn’t work,” Yanan grumbled. A few minutes later he was finally ready and once again wasted no time pushing in. 

Hyunggu groaned when Yanan finally pushed in. He pushed back as much as he could without seeming like a whore. He really didn’t care if Yanan hurt him as long as the dark magic went away. 

Yanan started thrusting shallowly at first but gradually picked up the pace. His hands held Hyunggu’s hips still so he didn’t keep pushing him back. It was obvious by his choppy thrusts that he wasn’t on par with how he usually was but he didn’t care. He just wanted to finish so he could go to sleep.

It didn’t take Hyunggu very long to realize that Yanan was not at all up to his usual abilities. “Switch with me,” he said, “I’ll ride you again.”

“I’m fine,” Yanan growled. He snapped his hips roughly to prove his point and forced himself to keep up the faster pace. 

“Did last time even help you at all?” Hyunggu gritted out. His knees slipped wider from the new force. 

“Doesn’t matter,” Yanan snapped. He continued to pound into Hyunggu, trying to finish the boy off. His hands held his hips up so they didn’t move too far away from him. 

Hyunggu just rolled his eyes and quit complaining. As long as Yanan got rid of the dark magic, he really didn’t care. 

“See how much nicer everything is when you keep your mouth closed?” Yanan growled. He was starting to reach the edge but he didn’t want to cum before Hyunggu so one of his hands slipped from his hip to wrap around his cock.

Hyunggu groaned as Yanan starts to jack him off. He wasn’t going to last much longer after this. He clenched his muscles, tightening himself around Yanan. 

Yanan was caught off guard when Hyunggu clenched around him and he came with a quiet shout. He rode out his high and continued to stroke Hyunggu off. He hoped the fae came soon, it was getting hard to hold himself up. 

Between the warmth of Yanan cumming in him and the pressure the hand on his cock, Hyunggu barely managed to last another minute before he came into the sheets with a whine. Spent, his limbs collapsed, taking Yanan down with him. 

Yanan barely managed to push himself to the side so he didn’t crush Hyunggu. He laid quiet for a moment, trying to catch his breath. A few minutes later, he finally spoke up again. “So this is the part where you get up and sneak home,” he wasn’t stupid enough to phrase it as a question. 

Hyunggu huffed. “Can’t very well do that with a cock in my ass now can I?” he snarled. rhetorically. If he tried to get off himself in this position, he would end up tightening his muscles and make the whole ordeal a lot more painful than it needed to be. 

Yanan sighed tiredly. He carefully pulled out before rolling away from Hyunggu. He didn’t know why it hurt so bad that the fae wouldn’t even stay the night. It had to be this fucking connection. It’s been responsible for everything else going wrong in his life. 

“It’s not like I enjoy limping through the woods with cum on my legs,” Hyunggu said as he sat up and grabbed his clothes off the floor, “but I don’t enjoy being led on either. That’s all you’re doing when you ask me to stay, and I don’t appreciate it at all.”

Well, that stung. “Right. ‘Cause I just enjoy being used when you get too wound up to handle yourself. ‘Cause I enjoy laying on my couch for days at a time, unable to move because my energy drains too quickly and you’re the only one who can replenish it,“ Yanan said, “but that’s fine. I’ll just wait here until you get angry and horny again.”

Hyunggu snorted as he finished getting dressed. “You’re a fucking incubus, Yanan,” he said, “you should be used to people using you for your dick. I’m not gonna let you use these circumstances to break my heart. Sorry.”

“Break your heart? What are you on!? I’m only like this because of this fucking black magic that decided connecting us was its best option. And that’s probably why you think I’m leading you on. If I could go back and make sure this didn’t happen, I would,” Yanan said angrily. He pushed himself up so he could get dressed. 

Hyunggu scoffed. “ _ Please _ ,” he said incredulously, “as if you would ever like me back.”

“Like you back? Oh, no, this black magic is really fucking with you. You don’t like me Hyunggu; you’re connected to me. That black magic is drawn to me and forcing you to be too. This isn’t natural and it never would have happened if I wasn’t so stupid,” Yanan said. He fixed his pants and pulled his shirt over his head.

“I’ve liked you since we met, asshole,” Hyunggu told him crossly, “I told you that before. But here we are, back to square one, where I’m an idiot and an infant and have no idea what’s going on in my own mind. Believe it or not, I  _ can  _ tell which emotions are real or not.”

Yanan sighed sadly and hung his head. “You know you’re not the first person to do this right? To think they’re in love with me or some variant. You’re not the first person I’ve slept with multiple times either. But it’s not safe for you. This ‘liking’ me isn’t what you think it is. It’s an infatuation that started with you being drawn by my own magic and now the black magic. Everytime we sleep together, it gets stronger, but you have to remind yourself it’s not real. People don’t like demons on their own, they get tricked into it,” he explained quietly. 

“In case your forgot, your magic didn’t used to work on me,” Hyunggu said, “and it doesn’t now either. You don’t draw from me as an incubus, you draw from me as the other end of my magic. If you’re to refuse to even let me acknowledge my feelings, then of course I don’t want to stay here. Either way,  _ I’m  _ the one that ends up hurt again.”

Yanan froze. Could this be true? But it didn’t add up. He shook his head; it hurt too much to think about. “Even if your feelings are genuine, we can’t be together,” he said quietly, “I’m not risking getting attached to someone just to have them torn away from me in a few years. I’m not living for eternity like that.”

“Fine,” Hyunggu said coldly, “you might be able to go eighty years without forming any sort of attachments, but I can’t. Whether you like it or not, we’re stuck together either way. What do you think is going to happen to you when I die? Huh?”

“I’ll spend eternity is a state of weakness and I’ll never be able to repay my debt that put me here,” Yanan said quietly, “I...I’m not going to spend the next eighty years not forming any attachment. I’m going to spend them not acting on how I feel so that the end of this hurts less for both of us.”

“No, it’ll hurt less  _ for you _ ,” Hyunggu said, “cause, guess what, it’s gonna suck for me the entire fucking time and then I’ll be dead. And it won’t even hurt less for you anyway! You’ll suffer not being able to act in anything, you’ll suffer becoming weak after I’m gone, and you’ll suffer missing me because you’re never gonna be able to forget me now, not with the connection. Is it  _ really  _ worth it to put us both through that much when you could have some momentary happiness instead?”

Yanan turned around to face Hyunggu. “You honestly and truly want to be with me? Someone who will never be able to love and cherish you properly? Someone who will never be able to properly express their feelings for you? Someone who was designed to take your love and infatuation and use it to manipulate you? Hyunggu, I would never forgive myself if I hurt you and I know I’m going to,” he said shakily. He’d never felt this vulnerable in all of his years. 

“You’re hurting me already,” Hyunggu said coldly. He was done with this conversation. “I can’t do this anymore. I won’t bother you again.” He walked out after that and broke into a run once he was outside. 

Yanan collapsed onto the bed. He felt like he was in a fog. He could barely register what was going on, but he did know the black magic was building up the further away Hyunggu got. He wanted to follow the boy to make sure he was okay but he couldn’t bring himself to move. 

Hyunggu made it home and locked himself inside. He  _ hated  _ Yanan, he tried to convince himself. The incubus was a horrible, horrible man and Hyunggu  _ hated  _ him. It wasn’t true though, and he collapsed into bed, sobbing and feeling like a whore.

Yanan wasn’t sure what to do. They couldn’t live like this and they certainly couldn’t act on any feelings Hyunggu had. He felt bad that the boy had conditioned himself to like him after everything going on. He tried to think of a solution and he was about to give up when it dawned on him. Hui. Maybe the older man could convince Hyunggu that he was wrong and that this wasn’t anything more than an arrangement to keep the black magic at bay.

Hyunggu ended up crying himself to sleep, and then some. It was morning again by the time he woke up and he just wished that Yanan truly did leave him alone. 

Yanan forced himself to stand and headed through the woods to where Hui lived. “I haven’t seen you in a while,” the older man commented. “You know I don’t bother you unless I need something,” Yanan said. Hui stayed silent, waiting for the incubus to continue. “I need you to try and control Hyunggu again.” Hui raised his eyebrows. “He’s avoiding you again?” Yanan shook his head. “He thinks he likes me,” he said quietly.

Hyunggu finally left the house to forage for some food. He was worn out and starving from the night before. If only he could hunt. 

“And you want me to…?” Hui trailed off. “Convince him that he doesn’t and that he doesn’t need to depend on me because of this connection,” Yanan finished. Hui sighed. “Fine. I’ll try but I’m not promising anything and if it doesn’t work, you have to figure out how to fix it,” he agreed. 

Hyunggu didn’t manage to gather a whole lot before he got too tired, but it was enough to start a simple stew. He trudged back to the hut to start cooking. 

"I'm not hunting him down," Hui warned. "That's fine. He'll come crawling back to me in a few days anyway," Yanan said. Hui paused to think about the situation for a moment. "Why are you so insistent on pushing him away? Wouldn't it be easier if you two just stayed together?" he asked cautiously. Yanan's eyebrows narrowed and he glared at Hui.

Once the soup was set to simmer, Hyunggu went and curled up in his armchair. He was tired and he was sad. Why did Yanan insist on leading him on like this?

"Because this isn't right. We're not supposed to stay together. I'm supposed to get my energy from passersby and he's supposed to get his from the trees and whatever else," Yanan snapped, "this isn't natural. He shouldn't be feeling like this!" "Black magic isn't natural," Hui said calmly, "and it's stronger than you. If you stop resisting it and stop trying to trick it, you're going to be a lot better off."

Hyunggu eventually started to doze off. Between the heat from the sunny window behind him and the smell of the simmering stew, he was incredibly comfortable and poised perfectly to fall asleep. 

"I came here for help not to get a lecture," Yanan growled. "Well, this is what you're getting because I changed my mind. I'm not manipulating that boy again. I know you're not used to this whole attachment thing but you need to stop resisting it because it's only going to make everything worse and who knows how the black magic with start affecting you. Let go of your ego for just a minute and start trying to take advantage of this situation as best you can," Hui said.

Hyunggu woke up feeling no better than when he’d fallen asleep. This whole black magic thing was making it impossible for him to take care of himself. He let the stew continue to simmer and simply went to bed. 

Yanan stayed quiet. "How do you actually feel about all of this?" Hui asked. "Confused. Annoyed. Inconvenienced," Yanan said easily. "No, you know what I meant," Hui said, slightly annoyed. Yanan sighed. "I'm tired, I'm confused, and... I'm scared," he said quietly. "Of what?" Hui asked gently. "Of admitting I care."

Hyunggu tossed and turned all night. He couldn’t sleep, couldn’t get his brain to shut off long enough. Why couldn't the black magic just leave him alone so he could move on from Yanan?

“I’m not gonna tell you what to do. I can’t,” Hui said, almost a little disappointed, “but you need to do something other get sulky and angry. I know you’re used to how your magic works, but it’s different now and you have to adjust. If you keep waiting until he comes to you, this is going to be a death sentence for you both.”

When Hyunggu did sleep, it was fitful. He kept waking up and readjusting and dozing off again, always unhappy. At some point, he just gave up on sleeping and laid there, staring at the ceiling. 

“You haven’t been yourself since everything happened,” Hui said gently. “Gee, I wonder why,” Yanan grumbled. Hui sighed. “You need to go talk to him because I’m sure he’s just as miserable and scared and upset as you are,” he said. Yanan laughed wryly. “He’s even more upset than I am. He won’t want to see me until he has to.”

Hyunggu finally rolled out of bed and trudged into the kitchen. He spied the pot of soup and instantly flew into a rage like he’d never felt before. He grabbed the pot and threw it across the kitchen, not even flinching when its hot contents splashed back onto him. 

“Go find him,” Hui said firmly, “I’m sorry but I can’t help you. I guarantee once you talk to him everything will go almost back to normal.” Yanan huffed. “Welcome to how humans handle their emotions,” Hui said, patting the incubus on the shoulder, “now get out of here before I have to chase you out.” Yanan rolled his eyes but bade Hui a goodbye regardless. He left the hut and slowly made his way back through the woods to Hyunggu’s home. Hopefully the boy would at least hear him out. 

By the time Hyunggu’s anger subsided and he could think clearly again, nearly everything inside his home was destroyed. His body had been scalded by flying soup, cut by wayward shards of glass and ceramic, and bruised by falling containers and dishware. He collapsed among the debris, sobbing harshly. He felt so utterly alone. 

Yanan slowly approached the house and was about to knock on the door when he heard sobbing. He threw the door open and rushed inside. He froze when he saw Hyunggu sitting in the middle of the floor bruised and bleeding, and his house looking like a tornado had ripped threw. 

Hyunggu looked up when he heard the door fly open. “Why are you here?!” he cried, “leave me alone!”

“I can’t do that,” Yanan said quietly. He carefully walked across the room towards Hyunggu. “What happened?”

“I don’t know, I don’t know!” Hyunggu said, frustrated, “I was just so  _ angry _ !”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay. That’s just part of what happens now. Let’s get you cleaned up and then we’ll get this picked up,” Yanan said. He reached Hyunggu and reached down to help the boy to his feet. 

Hyunggu wasn’t quite steady as Yanan picked him up. “I don’t want you here,” he sobbed, “please, leave me alone!”

“I know, I know. I’m sorry but I’m the only one around to help you right now. Just let me get you cleaned up and not bleeding and then I’ll go find Hyojong to help you with the rest,” Yanan said, supporting Hyunggu over to the couch. He swiped off the pieces of a broken vase before slowly lowering Hyunggu to sit down.

“Let go of me!” Hyunggu said. He pulled himself away from Yanan, falling onto the couch. Why did the incubus have to torture him like this?

Yanan chewed on his lip. He hated seeing Hyunggu this upset but he had to prove to the faerie that he was trustworthy. He found Hyunggu’s bathroom and wet a cloth. Wordlessly, he brought the cloth back and handed it to Hyunggu before starting to picking up the broken glass and ceramic that littered the floor. “Would you rather me go get one of your friends?” he asked. 

Hyunggu shook his head. He didn’t want anyone to see him like this. He clutched the rag tightly, not even sure what to do with it. 

“Alright. Clean yourself up and I’m gonna clean up your house. Don’t move or you’re gonna cut your feet up more,” Yanan said. He started the long haul of cleaning up Hyunggu’s living room.

Hyunggu didn’t even have it in him to argue. Who was Yanan to come in and take care of him after everything?

Yanan worked for a few minutes before looking up at Hyunggu. The boy hadn’t even moved to clean the blood dripping down his forehead. “Can I have Changgu come and help clean you up?” he asked. 

Hyunggu shook his head. He didn’t want anyone, not even Yanan right now. This entire thing was mortifying. 

“Okay,” Yanan agreed. What else could he do? He went back to work, silently cleaning up Hyunggu’s house. He collected all of the broken pieces into a large pile in the center of the room. 

Hyunggu finally came alive and lifted the rag to stem the blood flowing from his forehead. “I’m sorry,” he finally said. 

“You’re not the one who needs to apologize,” Yanan said quietly. He stopped what he was doing to try and find a cup that had survived to get Hyunggu some water. 

“I am,” Hyunggu said, “here you are helping me and all I’ve done is yell at you.”

“It’s okay. I deserve it,” Yanan said quietly. He finally found what he was looking for and brought a cup of water over to Hyunggu. “I’ve been trying to ignore, avoid, and hide from this connection because I wanted my life back. But after talking with Hui, he helped me realize that I have to work with what I have. And I have you. You’re the only one I can take energy from and I’m the only one that can relieve you of the black magic. You were right and I should have listened. It’s better for us to have some semblance of happiness and comfort while we’re here than always being on edge and miserable.”

“I am  _ so alone _ ,” Hyunggu said heavily, “I just thought you might understand and sympathize. But don’t force it. That’s worse.”

“I  _ do  _ understand and I  _ do  _ sympathize. I’ve just lived my entire life alone and I forget that other people aren’t used to that,” Yanan said quietly, “and I’m not forcing this. I’ve been lying to myself ever since my magic changed and I’m done trying to fight this. We can’t keep going in circles either.”

“I-I can’t do this right now,” Hyunggu said, “I’m too emotional to do this right  _ now _ . The past month of my life has been so unthinkably insane. I know your magic changed, and that’s really, really difficult to handle, but my entire  _ life  _ changed, Yanan.”

Yanan sighed. “I know that and I’m sorry. I don’t mean to overwhelm you right now but I just wanted to apologize,” he said quietly. He stood up and surveyed the house that had been relatively put back together and cleaned up, save for the piles of debris. “I can go and wait until you’re feeling up to talking.”

Hyunggu bit his lip. He really didn’t want to be alone right now, but he also didn’t trust Yanan not to wake up in the morning and change his mind again. In the end, one side weighed out over the other. “Please don’t leave me alone again,” he begged quietly. 

Yanan looked back down at Hyunggu. “I won’t. Now come on. We both need to lay down and I don’t fit in your bed,” he said. He extended a hand to help Hyunggu to his feet.

Hyunggu clung to Yanan, still not quite steady on his feet. He really, really hoped he didn’t regret this. 

Yanan easily scooped Hyunggu into his arms. He carried the faerie bridal style through the woods and to his own home, only putting him down when they reached the bedroom. 

Hyunggu didn’t even fight it. He knew he wouldn’t make it all the way back to the incubus’ house on his own. Once he was in the bed, he sat up and pulled his shirt off. 

Yanan furrowed his eyebrows. “What are you doing?” he asked, reaching over to stop Hyunggu, “it’s chilly in here and I’m not really good for keeping people warm.”

“No, but I am, and we both need to replenish our energies,” Hyunggu said tiredly, “skin to skin, remember?”

Yanan pulled his hands back. “Right, yeah,” he said quietly. He shed his own shirt before crawling into bed and laying next to Hyunggu. 

Hyunggu pressed as close to Yanan as he could. He pulled the blanket up to cover their shoulders. “Thank you for helping me,” he said softly. 

Yanan wrapped his arms around Hyunggu and pulled the boy closer. He hummed quietly, already feeling the magic flowing between them. “It’s the least I could do for you. You’ve been through so much. I’m just glad I came when I did,” he said softly.

Hyunggu sighed. “You really meant what you said before?” he asked hesitantly. 

“I did,” Yanan promised, “I want to figure this thing out and I can’t keep pushing you away anymore. We’re in this together and it’s time I started acting like it.” This was weird but he knew he had to do it. Maybe he could get used to just having one person in his life. 

“Do you...could this ever be...romantic, for you?” Hyunggu asked tentatively. He wouldn’t blame Yanan if the answer was no, but he needed to know what to prepare his heart for. 

Yanan paused. “I’m not sure,” he said honestly, “romance had never really been a part of my life but now that we’re connected maybe that’s changed too. What I do know is that I already care about you a lot more than I’ve let on so maybe we’re headed in the right direction.”

Okay, Hyunggu could work with that. He just had one more thing to ask of Yanan. “Can you please promise to stop treating me like a child?” he asked, “I know I  _ seem  _ like a baby compared to you, but I’m not. Being a faerie doesn’t make me inherently innocent, just like being an incubus doesn’t make you inherently evil. I have a fuckton of trauma and I might not always handle it in the most mature of ways, but it really hurts when you just dismiss how I feel.”

“I promise I’ll stop treating you like a child,” Yanan said sincerely, “and you can come to me when you’re hurting. Don’t try to hold onto all of it; you’ll just get hurt even more.”

“I promise I’ll do my best,” Hyunggu said. That was the best he could give. He had never really had anyone to talk about his feelings with, so the idea of opening up was nerve wracking. 

“That’s all I can ask for,” Yanan said, “now get some sleep. You’ve had a long day.” He leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to Hyunggu’s temple, hoping it would help him relax. 

Hyunggu sighed and closed his eyes. He relaxed in Yanan’s arms, calmed by the gentle flow of energy between them. “Good night, Yannie,” he murmured. 


End file.
